Viral Hepatitis Updates from the HHS Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy

Dear Colleague,

August is Immunization Awareness Month – a time for us to reflect on the important role that vaccinations play in improving health outcomes and ultimately saving lives. As you know, immunizations stem the transmission of dozens of infectious diseases, including viral hepatitis. Vaccines have effectively changed the course of population health both at home and globally. However, the need for continued progress remains, especially as we look toward achieving our national viral hepatitis elimination goals.

Despite safe and effective vaccines for hepatitis A and hepatitis B, hepatitis A outbreaks have occurred in 29 states (2016–today) and hepatitis B rates were above the Healthy People 2020 goal for nine states in 2016. As states across the country continue to respond to growing hepatitis A outbreaks and specific communities face higher hepatitis A outbreak risk , immunization is the best prevention action to take. One dose of the hepatitis A vaccine has been shown to control outbreaks and provides up to 95% protection in healthy adults, which will also prevent new outbreaks. Recent steep increases in hepatitis B in a number of states have occurred because not enough people are vaccinated for hepatitis B.

Ensuring vaccination of all infants and at-risk adults can prevent infections and unnecessary deaths. Successful implementation of widespread hepatitis A and B immunization programs can move us toward achieving the first goal of the National Viral Hepatitis Action Plan: preventing new viral hepatitis infections. If you’re interested in learning more about hepatitis A and B vaccinations or want to share information with others, please visit our basics pages.

Corinna Dan, RN, MPH
Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

What's New in the Blog

In case you missed them, here’s a quick rundown of posts recently published on the HHS Viral Hepatitis blog:

NHCN Meeting: Hepatitis C Medicaid Affinity Group (8/7/2019) – A disproportionate number of people living with HCV are in correctional settings. The Hepatitis C Medicaid Affinity Group is working to address this issue.
VA has cured 100,000 Veterans of Hepatitis C (8/7/2019) – New drugs and outreach campaigns helped VA to rapidly deploy and treat Veterans.
CDC Commemorates World Hepatitis Day (8/1/2019) – A message from CDC commemorating World Hepatitis Day, July 28.
World Hepatitis Day: Working Toward Elimination (7/26/2019) – On World Hepatitis Day, HHS highlights the need for expanded hepatitis screening on the path toward elimination.

Hepatitis in the News

MCSO: Hepatitis A outbreak in Maricopa County jail facilities (8/8/2019) – The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) in Maricopa County, Arizona, released a statement about a hepatitis A outbreak in their jail facilities. In order to stem the spread, over 4,000 hepatitis A vaccinations have been administered.
Minnesota homeless, drug users hit by hepatitis A outbreak, health department says (8/8/2019) – The Minnesota Department of Health reported a hepatitis A outbreak of 23 new cases across nine counties among people who use drugs, are experiencing homelessness, or have recently been incarcerated.
Florida Hepatitis A Cases Continue Piling Up (8/5/2019) – Last week, Florida reported 81 new hepatitis A cases, prompting the state’s Surgeon General to declare a public health emergency.
World Health Organization urges countries to invest in eliminating hepatitis (7/26/2019) – Ahead of World Hepatitis Day, the World Health Organization underscored the need to continue working to eliminate hepatitis around the globe. In the report, the WHO highlights costs, barriers, and opportunities related to elimination efforts.