The CDC wants to end the HIV epidemic in the country by 2029

NEW YORK (WTRF) – More than a million American citizens have HIV and 165,000 others do not have HIV now.

The goal of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is to reduce by 90% the number of new infections by 10 years.

CDC officials said the progression of current HIV prevention has stalled for a number of reasons.

"This is partly because some people do not know that they have HIV," said Dr. Jonathan Mermin, director of the National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STDs, and HIV. tuberculosis at the CDC. "Some HIV-positive people do not get the treatment they need, and some of the people who are eligible for PREP, the pill that prevents you from getting HIV, do not get it."

Government health officials said it was possible to end the epidemic, but only if these services were available to those in need.

There are approximately 39,000 new HIV infections each year in the United States.