N.Y. PRISONS HAVE MOST AIDS CASES

By BILL HOFFMANN

AIDS cases in the nation's prisons have skyrocketed, with New York state having the most HIV-positive inmates.

The disturbing trend comes despite the fact that AIDS-related deaths behind bars have fallen sharply because of better treatment, a new Justice Department study says.

The federal statistics show that in 1999, 242 state and federal inmates nationwide died from AIDS-related causes, down from a 1995 peak of 1,010.

But from 1995 to 1999, the number of prisoners testing positive for HIV rose 1,500, to nearly 25,800.

And New York prisons held 7,000 HIV-positive inmates in 1999, more than those in any other state.

The numbers also show that women inmates are at greater risk.

The HIV-positive rate was 3.4 percent among female inmates, compared with 2.1 percent among male prisoners.

There were nearly 10,000 confirmed AIDS cases in federal, state and local correctional facilities in 1999: 6,200 in state prisons, 3,100 in local jails; and 430 in federal institutions.