March 11, 2019

Admiral Brett P. Giroir, MD
Assistant Secretary for Health
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue SW, Room 715-G Washington, DC 20201
Re: Update to the National Viral Hepatitis Action Plan

Tammy R. Beckham, DVM, PhD
Director, Office of HIV/AIDS & ID Policy
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 330 C Street SW, Room L001
Washington, DC 20024

Re: Update to the National Viral Hepatitis Action Plan

Dear Dr. Beckham:

On behalf of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and the HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA), thank you for the opportunity to provide input on the update to the National Viral Hepatitis Action Plan. IDSA and HIVMA represent nearly 12,000 physicians, researchers, scientists and other healthcare professionals, including many who work on the frontlines of infectious diseases, providing prevention and care and conducting research in communities across the country. 

Despite the availability of effective prevention and treatment for viral hepatitis including vaccines for hepatitis A and B and curative treatment for hepatitis C, the number of new cases continues at alarming rates in the U.S. with hepatitis C cases increasing about 3.5 fold from 2010 to 2016. Similar to HIV, we have many of the tools to end the viral hepatitis epidemics, but there remains a significant divide between the science and access to services and treatment on the frontlines. The synergies between the viral hepatitis epidemics and the opioid epidemic have fueled spikes in new cases and challenged health care and public health systems in meeting the demand for prevention, care and treatment. Read the full statement here.