Public Health Challenges in the US: What are we Prioritizing?

     Disease            Number of New Cases, 2017              Deaths

1.  Gonorrhea                     500,000                                       ?

2.  Syphilis                          100,000                                       ?

3.  HIV                                  33,000                                  15,000

4.  C. difficile                      450,000*                                29,000*

5.  Measles                                 120                                       0

Case numbers and deaths obtained from National Notifiable Infectious Diseases and Conditions: United States, cdc.gov and hiv.gov.

* 2011 estimate is from a CDC study, as C. difficile is not a reportable disease, and no current data have been published.  However, CDC surveillance at 10 US sites indicated a steady increase in cases from 2011 to 2014, the last year for which data are provided.