WYFF: S.C. in Top Ten for New AIDS Cases

South Carolina has been named one of the top ten states for new AIDS cases in the country. 

According to the Department of Health and Environmental Control, since 1981, thousands of people living in South Carolina have died from AIDS.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also ranked South Carolina eighth in the nation on the rate of new AIDS cases annually.

Those living with HIV and AIDS say a big reason for those numbers is a fear of judgment, keeping people from getting care.

For Fenicia Rosario, talking about HIV hasn’t always been easy.

“When you’ve got cancer it's OK, but when you have HIV or AIDS, everybody wants to push you away,” said Rosario.

But silence she says can be deadly.

“They're fearful of what's going to happen to them out there.  They are fearful of going to the doctor because they are not going to be treated right.  It's plain fear,” said Rosario.

"Living in the Bible Belt, especially when you get in the topic of sex and drug use and that type of thing, that's not something that people are, especially in the South, are open to discuss,” said Quinton Ellison with AID Upstate.

Ellison said part of the reason for the high numbers is the stigma surrounding the disease.

Rosario said it's time to re-educate the community.

“What we can do to change that is get the word out first of all like we are doing now,” said Rosario.

Rosario wants to see more funding, especially for rural areas in the South, which she says has a serious lack of resources.

It's the funding.  It's the education.  All of this goes hand in hand.  One voice can't do it.  We need a lot of voices,” said Rosario.

Free HIV testing is available at AID Upstate.  For more information, click here.