Poland has recorded a sharp rise in HIV cases over the past five years, with epidemiologists pointing to Ukrainian migration as one factor behind the increase.
According to Rzeczpospolita, the number of identified HIV patients in Poland has risen from 20,046 at the start of the decade to 31,738 last year, based on National Health Fund data. Over the same period, public spending on reimbursed HIV drugs rose from 436 million zlotys (€102.7 million) in 2020 to 728 million zlotys (€171.4 million) in 2025.
In 2025, Poland recorded 2,755 newly detected HIV infections. Compared with 2020, the incidence rate per 100,000 people tripled from 2.43 to 7.37. By the end of April this year, 791 cases had already been registered, compared with 734 during the same period last year.
Prof. Iwona Paradowska-Stankiewicz, Poland’s national consultant in epidemiology, said migration from across Poland’s eastern border was affecting the figures. “Eastern Europe is a region where the number of HIV infections and AIDS cases is statistically very high, which translates into a higher number of diagnosed cases in our country due to Ukrainian migration,” she said.
At the beginning of 2022, around 245,000 people were living with HIV in Ukraine, and HIV prevalence among adults aged 15 to 49 was estimated at 0.9 percent. In Poland, the rate in the same age group was around 0.1 percent.
Artur Białoszewski, an epidemiologist and president of the Polish Prevention Association, said the difference was almost ninefold. He added that in 2021, Ukraine recorded 37.1 new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 people, compared with 3.58 per 100,000 in Poland, a more than tenfold difference.
Poland’s HIV figures began rising more sharply in 2022, the year Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and millions of Ukrainians crossed into neighboring countries. That year, Poland recorded 2,384 new HIV cases. Of those, 682 were Polish citizens, 263 were foreign nationals, and nationality data was unavailable for 666 cases.
Białoszewski said the influx of people from Ukraine after 2022 should push Poland to organize testing responsibly, ensure continuity of antiretroviral treatment, and provide clear health information for those seeking refuge.
The issue is also becoming more relevant as the number of Polish-Ukrainian couples grows, making access to testing and treatment an increasingly important part of public health policy.
Other sexually transmitted diseases are also rising. Gazeta Prawna reported that syphilis cases have more than quadrupled since the beginning of the pandemic. Similar increases have been observed for gonorrhea and chlamydia.
The rise is also being driven by low testing rates, stigma, and changing patterns of transmission. Prof. Paradowska-Stankiewicz warned that many people avoid HIV tests because they fear discrimination, meaning the real number of infections is likely higher than official data suggests.
Health officials say sexual contact is now the dominant route of HIV transmission in Poland, replacing intravenous drug use as the main driver. Older Poles are another underdiagnosed group, with experts warning that seniors are less often asked about sexual risk and less frequently sent for testing.
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