Once the center of the epidemic, New York is the first Fast-Track City to reach the UNAIDS 90-90-90 target

From the Office of the Mayor of New York City:

New York City today announced that it has reached the UNAIDS 90-90-90 goals two years ahead of schedule, meaning that 90% of all people with HIV know their status, 90% of all people diagnosed with HIV are on treatment, and 90% of all people diagnosed with HIV who are on treatment are virally suppressed. As of 2018 in New York City, 93% of people with HIV have been diagnosed, 90% of people diagnosed with HIV are on treatment, and 92% of people on treatment are virally suppressed.

“Years of hard work and determination has put New York front and center in the global fight against HIV/AIDS, with more New Yorkers receiving treatment than ever, the day of zero diagnoses is closer than ever—something many believed unthinkable not so long ago. We will not rest until we end the epidemic once and for all.”

Mayor Bill de Blasio.

New York City is the first Fast-Track City in the U.S. to reach the milestone. The Fast-Track Cities initiative is a global partnership of more than 300 cities and municipalities around the world working to achieve the UNAIDS 90-90-90 targets. Last month, the Health Department released the 2018 HIV Surveillance Annual Report, which showed the number of people newly diagnosed with HIV in New York City in 2018 fell below 2,000 for the first time since annual HIV reporting began in 2001.

To continue its efforts to end the HIV epidemic once and for all, the Health Department will continue its citywide HIV testing initiative, New York Knows, for another five years. Launched during the first-ever World AIDS Day citywide event in 2014, New York Knows has grown into the nation’s largest HIV testing initiative, with over 2.5 million HIV tests conducted by community-based organizations, community health centers, hospitals, colleges and universities, faith-based organizations, and businesses since 2014. Moving forward, New York Knows will embody an HIV status neutral approach to prevention and treatment, ensuring that all New Yorkers receive quality care and services, regardless of HIV status. New York Knows will also expand its focus to include sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and hepatitis C in program goals, planning, and activities.

This press release was shared by the office of the Mayor of New York City, and views thereby expressed are solely authors.