Understanding Racial Disparities in HIV Using Data From the Veterans Aging Cohort 3-Site Study and VA Administrative Data

OBJECTIVES: We identified race-associated differences in survival among HIV-positive US veterans to examine possible etiologies for these differences. METHODS: We used national administrative data to compare survival by race and used data from the Veterans Aging Cohort 3-Site Study (VACS 3) to compare patients' health status, clinical management, and adherence to medication by race. RESULTS: Nationally, minority veterans had higher mortality rates than did white veterans with HIV. Minority veterans had poorer health than white veterans with HIV. No significant differences were found in clinical management or adherence. CONCLUSIONS: HIV-positive minority veterans experience poorer survival than white veterans. This difference may derive from differences in comorbidities and in the severity of illness of HIV-related disease.