(WASHINGTON POST)  Lenny Bernstein, December 18, 2016 — But the annual number of cases among men who have sex with men increased over the same time.

The number of annual HIV diagnoses declined by 19 percent between 2005 and 2014, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Sunday evening,  but diagnoses jumped 6 percent among men who have sex with other men.

Though they represent only about 2 percent of the population, men who have sex with other men accounted for nearly 67 percent of all HIV diagnoses in 2014 — 26,612 cases, according to the CDC report. The rise was driven by sizable increases among African Americans (from 8,235 diagnoses in 2005 to 10,080 last year) and Latinos (from 5,492 to 6,829). Among whites, the number fell considerably (from 9,966 to 8,207).

Still, the report showed that the rate of increase among black gay and bisexual men has slowed in recent years.

The data were released as a CDC-sponsored conference focused on preventing HIV infections began in Atlanta. About 40,000 people were diagnosed with HIV in the United States last year, and an estimated 1.2 million are currently living with the virus, according to the report.

Source: Annual HIV diagnoses down 19 percent over the past decade – The Washington Post