The District of Columbia says its HIV rate has dropped to 2.7 percent from previous estimates of 3.2 percent, The Associated Press (AP) reports. Despite the drop, the nation’s capital still has a higher HIV rate than any state and is well above the 1 percent threshold that defines an epidemic according to the World Health Organization. The DC HIV rate also is still higher than that of many countries currently receiving AIDS funding under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which does not make domestic grants. The DC data shows newly diagnosed cases dropped 24 percent between 2006 and 2010. HIV-related deaths dropped by 72 percent over that period. In 2010, 76 percent of people with HIV started treatment within three months of their diagnosis, up from 58 percent in 2006.

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