So many hepatitis infections – and deaths – can be prevented.
To eliminate hepatitis and achieve the WHO’s ambitious targets by 2030, simplified care services for viral hepatitis should ensure that:
all pregnant women living with chronic hepatitis B have access to treatment and their infants have access to hepatitis B birth vaccines to prevent infection;
90% of people living with hepatitis B and/or hepatitis C are diagnosed; and
80% of diagnosed people are cured of hepatitis C or treated according to newer hepatitis B expanded eligibility criteria.
But while we have the guidance and tools to diagnose, treat, and prevent chronic viral hepatitis, these services are still too often out of reach of communities and are sometimes only available at centralized or specialized hospitals.
Rapid diagnostic tests for viral hepatitis cost less than US$ 2, but many people still face out of pocket costs for testing.
There is now the option for hepatitis C self-testing and a WHO prequalified test to encourage testing in the face of stigma and discrimination.
While a timely dose of the hepatitis B vaccine can prevent babies from developing liver cancer later in life, only 45% of babies received the hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth in 2022.
Despite the availability of affordable generic viral hepatitis medicines, too many countries are still overpaying for them. For example, medicines used to treat hepatitis C (generic sofosbuvir and daclatasvir) costs US$ 60 for a 12-week course, but countries are paying anywhere between US$ 33to up to US$ 10 000.