when did magic johnson get hiv

Magic Johnson publicly announced that he was HIV-positive on November 7, 1991, after a routine preseason physical with the Los Angeles Lakers detected the virus.

Key timeline

• In the fall of 1991, a standard physical exam before the 1991–92 NBA season revealed that Magic Johnson had tested positive for HIV.

• On November 7, 1991, he held a press conference in Los Angeles to announce his HIV-positive status and his immediate retirement from the Lakers.

How he believes he got HIV

• Johnson later explained that he contracted HIV through unprotected sex with women during his playing career, emphasizing multiple partners and lack of protection as the key risk.

• At the time of his announcement, he stressed that his wife Cookie and their unborn child had tested negative, which helped change public perceptions of who could be affected by HIV.

Why this moment was historic

• His 1991 announcement became a turning point in how HIV and AIDS were viewed, shifting public conversation toward treatment, prevention, and destigmatization.

• Since then, he has used his platform and the Magic Johnson Foundation to support HIV/AIDS education, testing, and community programs.

TL;DR: Magic Johnson learned he was HIV-positive during a preseason physical in 1991 and announced it to the world on November 7, 1991, a moment that transformed public awareness of HIV.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.