Bacolod City Reports 16 New HIV Cases in 2025

The Bacolod City Health Office (CHO) has recorded 16 new cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection from January to February 2025. Executive Assistant Jonathan Diaz, who led the awareness campaign in Barangay Handumanan on Friday, July 18, 2025, said Bacolod has 16 new HIV cases recorded during January-February 2025, representing 38 percent of the 42 total infections across Negros Occidental and neighboring provinces. He said the city intensified its HIV response, through a targeted awareness campaign, as health officials revealed concerning infection rates across Negros Island.

\"The data from the Department of Health underscores the urgency of the City's expanded prevention strategy,\" he added. Diaz noted that it’s part of the City’s plan to conduct an education campaign targeting all barangays, educational institutions, and community groups; expanded testing capabilities through an annual P500,000 prevention fund; and development of a dedicated healthcare hub for treatment and counseling services.

Diaz said the officials of Barangay Handumanan led by Captain Febe Legaspi pledged to replicate the pilot program's outreach model, mobilizing health workers and youth advocates across the 61 barangays in Bacolod. Diaz said it is the administration's commitment to destigmatizing HIV care while implementing data-driven interventions. (MAP)