STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Hispanic and Latino people with HIV commonly reported high levels of health-care discrimination and stigma associated with the disease, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported this week, urging training for medical providers to address the issue.
Efforts to reduce HIV stigma and health-care discrimination must address the varied and unique experiences of this highly diverse population, the CDC said in announcing the results of its study.
The CDC analyzed data from the Medical Monitoring Project (MMP), an annual, cross-sectional study designed to report nationally representative estimates of experiences and outcomes among adults with diagnosed HIV.
Data from the 2018–2020 cycles were analyzed to assess self-reported stigma and health-care discrimination using adapted versions of validated multi-component scales among 2,690 adult Hispanic persons with HIV in the United States overall and by six characteristics.
Hispanic or Latino (Hispanic) people with HIV experience disparities in HIV health outcomes compared with some other racial and ethnic groups, the study found.
The CDC assessed experiences of stigma and discrimination among Hispanic people with HIV in the United States from 2018 to 2020. HIV stigma was assessed based on interview participants’ scoring of 10 statements that described aspects of HIV stigma, with 0 indicating no stigma and 100 high stigma.
The overall median HIV stigma score among Hispanic people with HIV was 32. Reported stigma was higher among females than males. Stigma was also high among Hispanic people with HIV who identified as American Indian/Alaska Native and those who were born in the Caribbean.
Also, 23% of Hispanic people with HIV reported discrimination in HIV health care settings in the past year, with differences by gender, race, English proficiency and other characteristics.
Training for providers should focus on actively listening to patient concerns, including stigma experiences, and using culturally and linguistically appropriate methods, the CDC said.
The findings in this report are subject to at least two limitations, the CDC said. First, data was self-reported and subject to recall and social desirability bias. Second, the interview only captured discrimination in HIV health care settings, excluding persons not in care and not capturing other forms of discrimination.
