FORT LAUDERDALE – A new report from the Florida Department of Health shows that the rate of infections for HIV/AIDS in South Florida rose last years. The numbers reflect the nation’s worst incidents of HIV/ AIDS in spite of efforts to control its spread.

The rate of new HIV infections was greatest in Palm Beach County, which saw a 30 percent increase from last year, followed closely by Broward County with a 25 percent increase.

Statewide, that number rose more than onein- five, or 21 percent. New AIDS cases rose 6 to 8 percent in Broward and Palm Beach.

Officials say artificially inflated stats reflect part of the increase, the results of changes to the counting methodology now being used by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). They likewise note that approximately half of the new reported cases came from MSMs (men who sleep with men).

In Broward County, there were more than 1,000 new reported HIV cases in 2011, which translates to 59 cases per 100,000 people, an increase from about 55 cases per 100,000 the previous year. Since 2008, Broward has had the highest per-capita infection rate in the U.S. Last year, CDC officials met to outline the elements of a major new and well-funded anti-AIDS campaign.

There were 407 new HIV cases reported in Palm Beach County last year or 30.7 per capita. It is one of a dozen metropolitan areas with the highest infection rates. Miami- Dade County has the nation’s second highest rate of infection.