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According to the Department of Health in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the United States has an estimated 925, 452 cases of AIDS within its borders, bringing the national cumulative rate of Aids cases per 100,000 to 328. Despite the prevalence of AIDS among residents within the United States, it is my belief that certain Americans choose to hold onto the ignorant belief that AIDS is a homosexual and intravenous drug user disease. In my opinion, this particular belief is manifested in Pennsylvania. In my own observations, some of the citizens of Pennsylvania believe that AIDS is a disease for those who live their lives outside of what the general public views as socially acceptable. Therefore, the AIDS epidemic is rarely discussed within Pennsylvanian schools and by its citizens. Although the cumulative rate per 100,000 people in Pennsylvania is below the national average at 258.79 as stated by the Department of Health in Pennsylvania (Tables) , this amount of AIDS cases is on the cusp of becoming a serious problem within the Pennsylvanian borders. As seen in the Lehigh County, the rate of AIDS cases per 100,000 is 233.2 (Tables).