Monitoring Selected National HIV Prevention and Care Objectives By Using HIV Surveillance Data United States and 6 Dependent Areas, 2019: Commentary

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) collects data to monitor progress toward achieving national goals and the objectives set forth in other federal directives, including the updated strategic plans of the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (DHAP) and for the United States [1–4]. This surveillance supplemental report complements the 2019 HIV Surveillance Report [5] and presents the results of focused analyses of National HIV Surveillance System (NHSS) [6] data to measure progress toward achieving national goals [1–3]. Data in this report are also used to assess Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) core indicators [7, 8] and to monitor progress toward the HIV-related national objectives in Healthy People 2030 and the National HIV Strategic Plan for the United States: A Roadmap to End the Epidemic 2021–2025 (NHSP), and the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE) initiative [9, 10].

Report Changes

Recognizing the changing needs for data, CDC has transitioned this report to a new format that includes figures and tables, and includes data reported to CDC’s NHSS through December 31 of the prior year. The use of data reported to CDC through December 31, 2020 will allow for a 12-month reporting delay and assessment of trends through the most recent diagnosis, death, and prevalence year (2019). Death and prevalence trends through 2019 should be interpreted with caution.

New to this report are the following:

• This report is presented in a new, digital format that includes figures based on charts and maps from the former Selected National HIV Prevention and Care Outcomes slide set.
• Tables now display additional geographic stratifications (i.e., region and population area of residence).
• A special focus profiles section was added to highlight 6 key populations: (1) Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex With Men (MSM), (2) Persons Who Inject Drugs (PWID), (3) Transgender Persons, (4) Women, (5) Persons With Perinatally Acquired HIV Infection, and (6) Young Persons. This section also includes the following topics: 2019 status and disparities for linkage to care within 1 month of HIV diagnosis and viral suppression by race/ethnicity, transmission category, and geography.
• Supplementary Tables S1-S7b display 2017 and 2018 data (where indicated) that have been updated. Stage of disease at time of diagnosis, linkage to HIV medical care, viral suppression within 6 months of diagnosis, receipt of HIV medical care, viral suppression, and PrEP coverage are included. Tables S8a-S10b on stage 3 (AIDS) classification at time of diagnosis of HIV infection for older adults were added.