Key points
- Health disparities create challenges for specific groups to get the care they need.
- HIV, STDs, viral hepatitis, and tuberculosis affect Hispanic or Latino People due to health disparities.
What are health disparities?
Health disparities are differences in the incidence, prevalence, and mortality of a disease and the related adverse health conditions that exist among specific population groups. These groups may be characterized by gender, age, race or ethnicity, education, income, social class, disability, geographic location, or sexual orientation. These health disparities are one reason why HIV, viral hepatitis, STDs, and TB take a greater toll in one population group over another. Find information about how these diseases affect Hispanic/Latino populations.
Challenges
HIV
In 2018, Hispanics/Latinos accounted for 27% of the 37,968 new diagnoses in the United States and dependent areas. In 2018, among adult and adolescent Hispanic/Latino males in the United States and dependent areas, 85% of new HIV diagnoses were attributed to male-to-male sexual contact, 7% were attributed to heterosexual contact, and 4% were attributed to injection drug use. Four percent of the diagnoses were attributed to male-to-male sexual contact and injection drug use, and less than 1% were attributed to other transmission categories. In 2018, among Hispanic/Latina adult and adolescent females in the United States and dependent areas, 87% of new HIV diagnoses were attributed to heterosexual contact and 12% were attributed to injection drug use. An HIV care and treatment study published in JAMA Internal Medicine showed that Hispanics/Latinos diagnosed with HIV are less likely than Whites to be linked to care, retained in care, receive antiretroviral treatment, and achieve adequate viral suppression.
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Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD)
Chlamydia
In 2018, the rate of reported chlamydia cases among Hispanics was 392.6 cases per 100,000 population, which was 1.9 times the rate among Whites.
Gonorrhea
In 2018, the rate of reported gonorrhea cases among Hispanics was 115.9 cases per 100,000 population, which was 1.6 times the rate among Whites. This disparity was similar for Hispanic females (1.4 times the rate among White females) and Hispanic males (1.8 times the rate among White males). The disparity in gonorrhea rates for Hispanics in 2018 was higher in the Northeast than in the Midwest, South, and West.
Primary and Secondary Syphilis
In 2018, 23.3% of reported P&S syphilis cases with known race/Hispanic ethnicity information occurred among Hispanics. The rate of reported P&S syphilis cases among Hispanics was 2.2 times the rate among Whites (13.0 versus 6.0 cases per 100,000 population, respectively). This disparity was greater for Hispanic males (2.2 times the rate among White males) than Hispanic females (1.7 times the rate among White females).
Congenital Syphilis
From 2014 to 2018, the rate of reported congenital syphilis increased 263.4% among Hispanics (12.3 to 44.7 cases per 100,000 live births). In 2018, the rate of congenital syphilis for Hispanics was 3.3 times the rate among Whites (44.7 cases versus 13.5 cases per 100,000 live births).
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Viral Hepatitis In 2018, there were 1,649 death certificates among US residents that listed hepatitis B as the underlying or a contributing cause of death. In 2018, Hispanics/Latinos had the second lowest hepatitis B related death rate, 0.28 deaths per 100,000 population, among all race/ethnic groups. In 2018, there were 15,713 death certificates among US residents that listed hepatitis C as the underlying or a contributing cause of death. In 2018 Hispanics/Latinos had the third highest death rate for hepatitis C among all race/ethnic groups at 4.64 deaths per 100,000 population.
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Tuberculosis In 2018, 87% of all reported TB cases occurred in racial and ethnic minorities. TB disease was reported in 2,617 Hispanics/Latinos in the United States, accounting for 29% of all people reported with TB disease nationally. The rate of TB disease in Hispanic/Latinos was 4.4 cases per 100,000 population, which is over eight times higher than the rate of TB disease in non-Hispanic whites (0.5 cases per 100,000 population). Hispanics/Latinos born outside the United States represented 32% of the TB cases among non-U.S.-born persons in 2018. Overall, 9,025 TB cases were reported to CDC from the 50 states and the District of Columbia in 2018.
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