Although blacks make up only 13.6% of the U.S. population, they account for 50.3% of all diagnosed cases of HIV, federal health officials have reported

The rate of HIV diagnosis among black men is eight times that of whites, and the rate for black women is 19 times that of whites, finds a new analysis of data from 37 states by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Compared to Hispanic men, black men have twice the rate of HIV infection, and black women are four times as likely as Hispanic women to have an HIV diagnosis, according to the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. One reason for these disparities is the background prevalence of the AIDS-causing virus is higher in the black community. Another is that there is also a higher rate of sexually transmitted diseases in the black community which facilitates the transmission of HIV. High rates of black male imprisonment are also an important factor. Researchers also found that HIV diagnoses have skyrocketed among young black gay men in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Among 15 - 29 year old black gay men in that city, HIV increased 144% from 2000 to 2008. The number of syphilis cases also increased, which is likely linked to the rise in HIV infections.