Two Tampa Bay Counties Among Highest HIV Rise In U.S.
According to a report by WFLA, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties are among the highest in the rise of HIV, in the entire country. Channel 8 also reports that after nearly two decades, scientists have discovered another new strain of HIV.
Abbott Laboratories conducted the study and reports that the new HIV strain is a part of the Group M version of HIV-1, (the same family of virus subtypes to blame for the global HIV pandemic.)
According to Brian Bailey with Metro Health you should not be alarmed..
“Don’t panic, don’t be alarmed by it. It’s not unusual to see new strains in the most common things such as the flu. We don’t know much about it at this point but what we do know is it does underlie the importance of being tested and prevention,”
Bailey also ads..
“HIV is no longer a death sentence and it hasn’t been for a very long time,
Still it’s worrisome. By 2017, Florida had 13% of all of the HIV diagnoses in the country. And according to the Florida Department of Health, there were almost 5,000 new HIV diagnoses here in Florida just last year.
Bailey says..
“Unfortunately, Pinellas and Hillsborough counties have both been identified by the CDC as two of the most burden counties when it comes to the HIV rise and that is among the country,”
Metro Health hopes the news about the latest strain will mostly serve as a reminder for the public to get tested and also to take preventative measures against HIV.
Testing takes only a minute and can be done at any of the Metro Health Centers across the Tampa Bay area. You can get your results in about a minute, so they feel there is no excuse to not know your status in this day and age.
For more information about the new strain or HIV testing, you can click HERE.
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