In a first-ever report released this month by the Centers for Disease Control of national estimates on the lifetime risks of contracting the HIV virus, the news for black and Hispanic males – but especially black men – is grim.

According to the comprehensive survey based on race, ethnicity, gender and geography black men who have sex with other men (MSM) have a 50% chance of contracting the virus while Hispanic men who do likewise have a 25% chance. White males who have sex with men have much lower rates of estimated infection with a one in 11 chance.

Heterosexual males are at least risk with a one in 473 chance followed by heterosexual women with a one in 241 chance of contracting HIV. The study appears to confirm that HIV infections rates are still largely a problem mostly within the LGBTQ community.

While drug use does increase the risk, the problem is particularly acute for men of color who, for a variety of cultural and practical reasons pose the greatest risks. For black men, the stigma of HIV is pervasive. Many blacks of a certain generation were inculcated, with the help of all-powerful churches, into believing that HIV/AIDS was a white man’s problem. By coming out, many men are still shunned from their families. Plus, there are simply not enough resources for black men to handle the epidemic. Machismo is also widely considered a factor.

For Hispanic men, while many of the same barriers to HIV prevention apply, the stigma of the disease is not as strong. Overall, Hispanic families are much more cohesive as a unit and place a stronger emphasis on the family. But for many, the fear of being undocumented, as possibly facing deportation, is greater than the risk of knowing their HIV status.

Looking at the problem regionally, the South has some of the highest rates of expected transmission with Maryland at one in 49, Georgia at one in 51, Florida at one in 54 and Louisiana at one in 56. Washington D.C., however, ranks at the top with one in 13 cases of expected HIV transmission. Not surprisingly, the states with the smallest populations rounded out the bottom; states such as North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Vermont and Wyoming.

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