World AIDS Day celebrates progress, looks to future

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – The Indianapolis Urban League hosted a special program Tuesday looking at the past 27 years since World AIDS Day first began.

At the time of the first World AIDS Day in 1988, an HIV diagnosis was often a death sentence. Now, a white male diagnosed with HIV has a life expectancy of 70 years.

Better education, testing and treatment are making a big difference, but according to Indiana State Health Commissioner Dr. Jerome Adams, there is still a long way to go.

“We’ve got over 5,000 Hoosiers who are living with HIV in our state,” said Dr. Adams. “We’ve had over 6,400 Hoosiers who have died from HIV in our state. And both of those numbers are still too high.”

Minorities and women still lag behind in surviving HIV and AIDS. Dr. Adams said everyone should be tested for HIV at least once in their lives. Those involved in high risk behavior should be tested yearly.