Arizona has the second highest-rate of HIV/AIDS cases among American Indians and Alaska Natives, The Yuma Sun reports.
Native Americans are about 5 percent of the state population. They represent about 4 percent of the HIV/AIDS cases, according to statistics from Arizona Department of Health Services.
Nationally, the HIV/AIDS rate for Native Americans is 10.6 per 100,000, according to the American Foundation for AIDS Research. That's the third highest rate in the nation.
Christina Allen, the HIV/AIDS counselor for the Quechan Tribe, is working to prevent the disease from spreading. She educates tribal members about safe sex and addresses some of the misconceptions surrounding HIV/AIDS.
"The more we educate people the more that stigma will be broken," Allen told the paper. "So we just try to promote prevention and intervention. We just do what we can."
Get the Story:American Indians face AIDS threat (The Yuma Sun 4/19)
Quechan counselor working to educate tribe about HIV (The Yuma Sun 4/19) Relevant Links:
National Native American AIDS Prevention Center - http://www.nnaapc.org Related Stories:
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