Perhaps a certain group of tourists need to pay attention to this

I see that the Bangkok Post (and elsewhere - the BP story is mostly behind a paywall) is reporting that Thailand now has more than 550,000 total cases of HIV,  which does seem a remarkably high figure for a its population.   

The country still has a reputation as an international hotspot for recreational holiday sex, both straight and gay, so you would think these figures would give both residents and sex tourists some pause.  I was interested in how the numbers compare to here, and an AI helpfully assisted:

For quick contrast:

Country	Cumulative HIV+ (recent)	Prevalence Rate
Australia	~30,900	~0.11–0.14%
Thailand	~500,000	~0.70–0.76%

So Thailand's prevalence is roughly 5–7 times higher than Australia's, even though its population is only about 2.4–2.5 times larger. 

As for the gender breakdown:

Here is a summary of the gender breakdown from various official sources:

• Overall Cumulative Prevalence (Bangkok, 2024): 59,588 men vs 30,097 women (nearly 2:1 ratio).

• Newly Diagnosed (2022 Survey): 75.2% male vs 24.8% female among 1,039 cases.

• Projected New Infections (2023): 81% male vs 19% female

 Which is quite different from the gender breakdown in Australia:

The breakdown by gender is:

• Males: 39,119 (91%)

• Females: 3,616 (8%)

• Trans and gender diverse: 157 (<1%)

 Articles say that Thailand has always been pretty progressive in terms of HIV activism as a health issue, and it seems that is easy for people with HIV to get the life sustaining treatment.  Is it that the country is now a victim, so to speak, of the knowledge that HIV is not a death sentence?  Because it sure seems the youth are being infected at rates that suggest they don't take precautions:

Youths aged 15 to 24 face the greatest risk, accounting for more than 25,000 cumulative cases. 

I'm not sure how widespread PrEP use is there - oh, Deepseek pops up this figure:

 By 2024, only 32,661 people were using PrEP nationwide, falling far short of the national target

Seems it is available, but not as easily as it might be?   Some potential help is on its way:

To improve uptake, Thailand is preparing to introduce new forms of PrEP. A pilot program for long-acting injectable PrEP (Lenacapavir), which is administered once every 6 months, is set to begin in 2026 . This option is preferred by many sex workers who find daily pills inconvenient or not discreet enough . 

One would think the messaging should change to "it's true, HIV may not kill you, but it's not a walk in the park being on medication and monitoring every day the rest of your life - get onto PrEP"?