Hospital Stays for Hepatitis C Increase Most Among Baby Boomers

Hospital stays involving hepatitis C increased 67 percent among “Baby Boomer” patients (ages 52–72) between 2005 and 2014, more than any other age group, according to a new AHRQ statistical brief. During the same period, hepatitis C hospital stays increased 15 percent among people 18 to 51 and 12 percent among people older than 72. The hepatitis C virus is the most common chronic bloodborne pathogen in the United States. Hospital stays involving hepatitis C nearly tripled from 2010 through 2015, likely due to increased needle use associated with the nation's opioid epidemic, the authors noted. AHRQ’s analysis, based on data from the agency’s Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, quantified trends for adults 18 years and older, including those with and without key co-occurring diagnoses for hepatitis B, HIV and alcoholic liver disease. Access the statistical brief.