Immigrants are experiencing higher rates of HIV infection in New York City

The percentage of New Yorkers diagnosed with HIV who are foreign-born jumped from 27% in 2007 to 31% in 2010, according to the Health Department, which called it a “public health failure” in a report. In 2001, that percentage was 17%. Ingrid Floyd, director at Iris House, which helps people with HIV/AIDS, said that about 40% of their clients are Latinos, and half of those are immigrants, many from the Dominican Republic and Central America. Across the United States, Latinos make up 16.7% of the population but 20% of all new HIV/AIDS cases.