Arizona's graying HIV problem

THE FORGOTTEN MAJORITY: HIV diagnoses in Arizona are markedly higher per capita than many regions in the U.S., rivaling parts of the Deep South where HIV has historically been a problem due to access and stigma.

Most of the people in Arizona diagnosed with the virus are people of color and under the age of 25, but there is a largely undiscussed issue of older people contracting the virus and spreading it amongst their communities.

According to the most recent Arizona Department of Health and Human Services reports, people over 50 years old account for 17% of all HIV diagnoses. It's unclear from the data where those people live and where they're contracting the virus (partners, bathhouses, or anonymous sex).

Public health experts say that the reasons for the increase ranges from the prevalence of sexual enhancement pills matched with a belief to ditch condoms in older age, to people not being on PrEP—the medical intervention that reduces HIV transmission by almost 100% for sexual intercourse.

Why older people don't figure out they have HIV early—spreading it among multiple partners—also spans from the stigma of getting tested for STD's as people get older to confusing regular aches and pains of old age with early signs of HIV.

For his last piece for us this summer, our intern Fitzwilliam Anderson has the story on how one organization is working to help with the social problems of living with HIV as people get older:

As older Arizonans living with HIV grows, so does their isolation.

In 2023, 17% of all people diagnosed with HIV were over the age of 50. It’s both a concern and a realization for some that more should be done.

LOOKOUTFitzwilliam Anderson (he/him)

LOOKOUT'S TAKE: HIV continues to be an issue for Arizona's LGBTQ+ community, but the reality is that even though it impacts us most, it doesn't impact us, alone.

Recent numbers show that cisgender straight women continue to be diagnosed with the virus because of sexual intercourse with their partners who have sex with other men unprotected. And Arizona's prisons have some of the highest HIV prevalence rates in the region.

But most shocking is how Arizona still lags behind other states like California and New York in PrEP usage despite us having the 4th largest trans population in the nation, and being one of the top 20 LGBTQ+ populations in the nation, according to the Williams Institute. According to AIDSVu, a research group that tracks HIV diagnoses and PrEP usage nationally, less than 10,000 people are on PrEP in Arizona, out of an estimated LGBTQ+ population of a quarter million youth and adults.

🌵 LOCAL NEWS

• MORE VOICES: One former student recounts her story of how a rebellious teacher gave her the tools to learn about her own bodily autonomy, at risk of losing his career as an Arizona teacher. LOOKOUT
• C'MON, VOGUE: The Kiki House of Paragon, a vogueing house from Philadelphia that became Arizona's first, brings their vogue nights to Tucson to build a dance community down south. Tucson Sentinel
• PROP 139: Arizonans will be able to vote for a constitutional amendment that would grant abortion as a right this next general election. AZ Mirror
• 10 YEARS: This week marks a decade of Mapping Q, an Arizona-based LGBTQ+ youth arts movement. UofA

🇺🇸 NATIONAL NEWS

• ASYLUM: Three asylum seekers in the U.S. recount their stories of what they were fleeing from, showing what's at risk under a U.S. policy that would see them expelled back home. NBC News
• ANTI-LGBTQ+ BIAS: In a review of two dozen death penalty cases, more than half of the people sentenced to death had been impacted by anti-LGBTQ+ bias during their trials. One juror explained they knew the defendant "was a homosexual and thought that he shouldn’t be able to spend his life with men in prison.” The Appeal
• LOG CABIN FUNDRAISER: In her return to the campaign trail, former First Lady Melania Trump made her debut this election season starting out with a fundraiser for the Log Cabin Republicans at her home in Mar-a-Lago. The Independent

Last week's question: What is the name of the bar where Milwaukee had its first LGBTQ+ uprising?

Last week's answer: Black Nite