March 10 is National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NWGHAAD), an annual observance led by The Office on Women’s Health, with this year’s theme being Prevention and Testing at Every Age. Care and Treatment at Every Stage. 

Although women are not always front and center in discussions about the HIV Epidemic, women—especially women of color—are heavily impacted, representing approximately 23% of people living with HIV in the U.S.  According to the latest New York City report, of all women newly diagnosed with HIV, 84% were either Black or Latina. Additionally, 94% of all transgender people who were newly diagnosed with HIV in NYC were transgender women, the vast majority being trans women of color.

Aside from being too often left out from HIV outreach and education efforts, women tend to put the health and care of others before their own needs. But the best way to care for loved ones is to care for yourself.

The first and most important step to staying healthy is getting tested for HIV and knowing your status. If you test positive, antiretroviral treatment (ART) can help make the virus undetectable and keep you healthy and thriving. (Being undetectable also means the virus is untransmittable.)

If you test negative, there are preventative measures such as PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis), which is 99% effective in preventing HIV transmission and is available as a daily pill or longer-acting injectable. The latest CDC data on PrEP uptake among women shows that only 10% of women who could benefit from PrEP were prescribed it. Further, recent research has shown that less than 2% of eligible Black cisgender women are taking PrEP, even though they are placed at elevated risk for HIV.

According to Sylvia Cowan, Amida Care’s Vice President of Customer Experience, Growth and Retention: “Prevention can be easy for women who are HIV negative. Many women engage in unprotected sex, but don’t know about PrEP or don’t think it’s for them. We must extend the conversation we’re having with men about PrEP to women. Many women think that PrEP is only for guys and many older women in the community mistakenly think that they’re not impacted by HIV. Ladies, PrEP is also for you!”

As we mark National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, let’s commit to addressing inequities that women have faced for far too long. This must include more targeted interventions and resources for women to take the steps they need to stay healthy. Together, we can ensure that women can access the resources and care they need, and we can see an end to the HIV/AIDS epidemic.