This Map Shows the Area of the US That’s Home to the Most People Living With HIV

July 24, 2017

It’s been 36 years since HIV/AIDS first popped up in the US. The disease quickly spiraled into an epidemic, but medical advances have since made HIV controllable with medication — especially if diagnosed early.

An estimated 1.1 million Americans currently live with HIV in the US, however, and thousands still die from AIDS every year.

AIDSVu, a project run by Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health in partnership with biotech company Gilead Sciences, has been mapping HIV by county since 2010. On Wednesday, it released its newest data — the maps show the prevalence of HIV as of 2014, as well as new diagnoses from 2008 to 2015. Here’s what the researchers found: Dr. Patrick Sullivan, the project’s lead researcher, told Business Insider that southern states are disproportionately affected by HIV; In fact, the five cities with the highest rates of new diagnoses are all in the south: Miami, Jackson, New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Atlanta; Sullivan also said that one age group is experiencing a disproportionate amount of new diagnoses: Those between the ages of 13 and 24.

In addition to providing a breakdown of HIV prevalence in the US, the project also maps out where testing centers are, as well as where people can get access to preventive treatments.

Read more on BusinessInsider.com. View the maps on AIDSVu.com.