National Youth HIV and AIDS Awareness Day on April 10 is the first awareness day to recognize the specific impact of HIV/AIDS epidemic on young persons. A disproportionate number of new HIV infections occurs among youths (1). In the United States, young persons aged 13–24 years accounted for an estimated 26% of all new HIV infections in 2010 . Nearly 60% of new infections in youths occur in blacks/African Americans, approximately 20% in Hispanics/Latinos, and approximately 20% in whites However, the percentage of youths tested for HIV is low compared with other age groups (1). Among the estimated 34% of U.S. high school students who are sexually experienced, only 22% have ever been tested for HIV (2). The Community Preventive Services Task Force recommends risk reduction interventions in school and community settings to prevent HIV among adolescents (3). Individual-level and group-level HIV prevention interventions provide knowledge, skill building, and increased motivation to adopt behaviors that protect against HIV infection, specifically for youths at high risk for HIV.
