Dear Colleague,

July 28 is World Hepatitis Day, a day to raise awareness about the global burden of viral hepatitis, which impacts more than 354 million people worldwide. This day provides an opportunity to bring attention to the impact of viral hepatitis, CDC’s efforts to combat viral hepatitis in the United States and globally, and the actions that can be taken to prevent these infections. CDC’s vision of a world without viral hepatitis is emphasized on World Hepatitis Day, as we continue our commitment to reduce disparities, prevent new viral hepatitis infections, and improve the lives of those with viral hepatitis.

CDC collaborates with international partners to understand and improve prevention, control, and elimination of viral hepatitis. In 2015, CDC partnered with the country of Georgia to launch the world’s first Hepatitis C Elimination Program. This program has been designated as the first-ever European Association for the Study of the Liver’s (EASL’s) International Liver Foundation Center of Excellence in viral hepatitis elimination. A serosurvey conducted in Georgia in 2021 demonstrated the success of this effort with a 67% reduction in hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection since 2015. CDC also supports the Treatment In Pregnancy for Hepatitis C (TiP-HepC) Registry project, an initiative between CDC and the Coalition for Global Hepatitis Elimination of the Taskforce for Global Health. This international program collects clinical information about exposure to direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) during pregnancy to improve global understanding of the safety of HCV treatment in pregnancy.

An area of global concern is the mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of hepatitis B virus (HBV); the primary source of chronic hepatitis B and leading cause of cirrhosis and liver cancer globally. Today, CDC published an article in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report detailing global progress made to eliminate MTCT of HBV. The article emphasizes the critical role vaccination plays in ensuring lifelong protection against HBV infection and highlights CDC’s multifaceted approach to improve viral hepatitis prevention and treatment globally. Domestically a recent CDC study identified persons born in the United States (U.S.) and living in the coastal and Appalachian states to have the highest hepatitis B-related deaths. CDC is using these data to inform an evidence-based approach to reduce hepatitis B-associated deaths in this area. 

CDC is committed to improving the lives of all people in the U.S. at risk for and affected by viral hepatitis through our domestic programming. Compared with the general U.S. population, prevalence of hepatitis C is significantly higher among people living in correctional settings. This World Hepatitis Day, CDC has partnered with the National Commission on Correctional Healthcare to increase awareness about viral hepatitis in correctional settings and encourage including the health of persons who are incarcerated or impacted by the justice system in all viral hepatitis elimination efforts.

CDC also aims to support the comprehensive health needs of people who use or inject drugs (PWUD/PWID), a group who is at highest risk for viral hepatitis infection. A recent CDC studypublished in Drug and Alcohol Dependence outlines the barriers and opportunities to offering vaccinations at syringe services programs to reach the estimated 3.7 million people (1.5% of the adult population) in the U.S. who inject drugs.

Other areas of activities include a national digital campaign to be released in mid-August promoting to primary care and prenatal care providers updated hepatitis C screening recommendations and formal publication of updated hepatitis B screening recommendations in the coming months. This update will move testing from risk-based to universal, benefiting partners, providers, and all people in the U.S.

This World Hepatitis Day, let us reflect on our collective accomplishments and refocus on a future free of viral hepatitis. Partners across the United States and globally, please join us in promoting testing, treatment, and prevention to eliminate viral hepatitis.