CDC Adds New HIV and Social Determinants of Health Indicators to NCHHSTP’s AtlasPlus

CDC Adds New HIV and Social Determinants of Health Indicators to NCHHSTP’s AtlasPlus



Dear Colleague

I am pleased to announce that the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention’s (NCHHSTP) AtlasPlus has added 11 new indicators that increase access to information on HIV and, for the first time, social determinants of health. AtlasPlus gives you quick access to more than 15 years of CDC’s surveillance data on HIV, viral hepatitis, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and tuberculosis (TB).

This update adds six new HIV indicators, including estimated incidence, estimated diagnosed HIV among all persons living with HIV infection and estimated persons living with HIV infection nationally and by state, and linkage to care, receipt of HIV medical care, and viral suppression by state.

The newest area of information added to AtlasPlus, social determinants of health, includes five indicators: poverty, uninsured, less than a high school education and vacant housing nationally and by state and county; percentage of population living in rural areas nationally and by state; and county urbanization level. With the inclusion of this information, we now have the ability to look at the complex, integrated, and overlapping social structures and economic systems that influence most health inequities.  Using these new data, you can gain a deeper understanding of the intersection of social determinants of health and HIV, viral hepatitis, STDs, and TB infections.

You can read more about the latest additions to AtlasPlus on the ‘What’s New’ web page and find detailed instructions on how to use AtlasPlus on the ‘About the AtlasPlus’ web page. You can also add the AtlasPlus button to your website to make it even easier to access and share this unique and powerful tool.

Whatever your role may be in public health or your interest in data about these diseases, I encourage you to visit the NCHHSTP AtlasPlus and explore its unique features and capabilities. Interact with the data and create customized tables, maps, and other graphics to visualize disease trends over time and see how the burden of these diseases are affecting the communities you serve. Harnessing the data is key to understanding these diseases and their effect on health, as well as designing and implementing more effective prevention programs and interventions.

/Jonathan Mermin/

Jonathan H. Mermin, MD, MPH
Rear Admiral and Assistant Surgeon General, USPHS
Director
National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention