II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1287 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to revise and extend the program 

for viral hepatitis surveillance, education, and testing in order to prevent 

deaths from chronic liver disease and liver cancer, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 12, 2015 

Mr. KIRK (for himself, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. CASSIDY, Mr. SCHUMER, and Mr. 

MERKLEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to revise and extend 

the program for viral hepatitis surveillance, education, 

and testing in order to prevent deaths from chronic 

liver disease and liver cancer, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Viral Hepatitis Testing 

5 Act of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

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1 (1) Approximately 5,300,000 Americans are 

2 chronically infected with the hepatitis B virus (re3 ferred to in this section as ‘‘HBV’’), the hepatitis C 

4 virus (referred to in this section as ‘‘HCV’’), or 

5 both. 

6 (2) In the United States, chronic HBV and 

7 HCV are among the most common causes of liver 

8 cancer, one of the most lethal and fastest growing 

9 cancers in the United States. Chronic HBV and 

10 HCV are among the most common causes of chronic 

11 liver disease, liver cirrhosis, and the most common 

12 indication for liver transplantation. More than 

13 15,000 deaths per year in the United States can be 

14 attributed to chronic HBV and HCV. Current infor15 mation indicates these represent a fraction of deaths 

16 attributable in whole or in part to chronic hepatitis 

17 C. From 2007 through 2011, mortality rates of per18 sons with hepatitis C increased 39 percent among 

19 persons aged 55–64 years to a rate of 21.9 deaths 

20 per 100,000 population in 2011. In 2011, the high21 est mortality rates of persons with hepatitis C by 

22 race/ethnicity and sex were observed among Amer23 ican Indians and Alaska Natives (10.6 deaths per 

24 100,000 population) and males (7.1 deaths per 

25 100,000 population) respectively. Mortality data 

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1 from 2011, the latest year for which these data were 

2 available, reveal the serious health consequences as3 sociated with viral hepatitis: chronic liver disease, in4 cluding cirrhosis, was the 12th leading cause of 

5 death in the United States in 2011. Chronic HCV 

6 is also a leading cause of death in Americans living 

7 with HIV/AIDS. Many of those living with HIV/ 

8 AIDS are coinfected with chronic HBV, HCV, or 

9 both. 

10 (3) According to the Centers for Disease Con11 trol and Prevention (referred to in this section as 

12 the ‘‘CDC’’), approximately 2 percent of the popu13 lation of the United States is living with chronic 

14 HBV, HCV, or both. The CDC has recognized HCV 

15 as the Nation’s most common chronic bloodborne 

16 virus infection. 

17 (4) HBV is easily transmitted and is 100 times 

18 more infectious than HIV. According to the CDC, 

19 HBV is transmitted through contact with infectious 

20 blood, semen, or other body fluids. HCV is trans21 mitted by contact with infectious blood, particularly 

22 through percutaneous exposures (i.e. puncture 

23 through the skin). 

24 (5) The CDC conservatively estimates that in 

25 2011 approximately 16,500 Americans were newly 

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1 infected with HCV and more than 18,800 Americans 

2 were newly infected with HBV. These estimates 

3 could be much higher due to many reasons, includ4 ing lack of screening education and awareness, and 

5 perceived marginalization of the populations at risk. 

6 According to the CDC, from 2010 to 2011 there was 

7 a 45 percent increase in the number of reported 

8 acute hepatitis C cases (from 850 to 1,229 cases) 

9 and another 45 percent increase from 2011 to 2012 

10 (from 1,229 to 1,778 cases), representing a 75 per11 cent increase from 2010–2012. In 2012, the rate of 

12 acute hepatitis C increased in every age group when 

13 compared with 2010 and 2011, with the largest in14 creases among persons aged 0–19 years (from 0.05 

15 to 0.11 cases per 100,000 population) and 20–29 

16 years (from 0.75 to 1.73 cases per 100,000 popu17 lation). 

18 (6) In 2012, CDC released new guidelines rec19 ommending every person born from 1945 through 

20 1965 receive a one-time HCV test. Among the esti21 mated 102 million (1.6 million chronically HCV-in22 fected) eligible for screening, birth-cohort screening 

23 leads to 74,000 fewer cases of decompensated cir24 rhosis, 46,000 fewer cases of hepatocellular car25 cinoma, 15,000 fewer liver transplants and 120,000 

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1 fewer HCV-related deaths versus risk-based screen2 ing. 

3 (7) In 2013, the United States Preventative 

4 Services Task Force (USPSTF) issued a Grade B 

5 rating for screening for hepatitis C virus (HCV) in6 fection in persons at high risk for infection and 

7 adults born between 1945 and 1965. In 2009, the 

8 USPSTF issued a Grade A for screening pregnant 

9 women for the hepatitis B virus (HBV) during their 

10 first prenatal visit. In 2014, the USPSTF issued a 

11 Grade B for screening for HBV in individuals at 

12 high risk. 

13 (8) There were 35 outbreaks (19 of HBV, 16 

14 of HCV) reported to CDC for investigation from 

15 2008–2012 related to health care acquired infection 

16 of HBV and HCV, 33 of which occurred in nonhos17 pital settings. There were more than 99,975 patients 

18 potentially exposed to one of the viruses. 

19 (9) Chronic HBV and chronic HCV usually do 

20 not cause symptoms early in the course of the dis21 ease, but after many years of a clinically ‘‘silent’’ 

22 phase, CDC estimates show more than 33 percent of 

23 infected individuals will develop cirrhosis, end-stage 

24 liver disease, or liver cancer. Since most individuals 

25 with chronic HBV, HCV, or both are unaware of 

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1 their infection, they do not know to take precautions 

2 to prevent the spread of their infection and can un3 knowingly exacerbate their own disease progression. 

4 (10) HBV and HCV disproportionately affect 

5 certain populations in the United States. Although 

6 representing about 6 percent of the population, 

7 Asian and Pacific Islanders account for over half of 

8 up to 1,400,000 domestic chronic HBV cases. Baby 

9 boomers (those born between 1945 and 1965) ac10 count for more than 75 percent of domestic chronic 

11 HCV cases. In addition, African-Americans, Latinos 

12 (Latinas), and American Indians/Alaskan Natives 

13 are among the groups which have disproportionately 

14 high rates of HBV infections, HCV infections, or 

15 both in the United States. 

16 (11) For both chronic HBV and chronic HCV, 

17 behavioral changes can slow disease progression if a 

18 diagnosis is made early. Early diagnosis, which is 

19 determined through simple diagnostic tests, can also 

20 reduce the risk of transmission and disease progres21 sion through education and vaccination of household 

22 members and other susceptible persons at risk. 

23 (12) Advancements have led to the development 

24 of improved diagnostic tests for viral hepatitis. 

25 These tests, including rapid, point-of-care testing 

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1 and others in development, can facilitate testing, no2 tification of results and posttest counseling, and re3 ferral to care at the time of the testing visit. In par4 ticular, these tests are also advantageous because 

5 they can be used simultaneously with HIV rapid 

6 testing for persons at risk for both HCV and HIV 

7 infections. 

8 (13) For those chronically infected with HBV 

9 or HCV, regular monitoring can lead to the early de10 tection of liver cancer at a stage where a cure is still 

11 possible. Liver cancer is the second deadliest cancer 

12 in the world; however, liver cancer has received little 

13 funding for research, prevention, or treatment. 

14 (14) Treatment for chronic HCV can eradicate 

15 the disease in approximately 95 percent or more of 

16 those currently treated. The treatment of chronic 

17 HBV can effectively suppress viral replication in the 

18 overwhelming majority (over 80 percent) of those 

19 treated, thereby reducing the risk of transmission 

20 and progression to liver scarring or liver cancer, 

21 even though a complete cure is much less common 

22 than for HCV. 

23 (15) To combat the viral hepatitis epidemic in 

24 the United States, in May 2011, the Department of 

25 Health and Human Services released, ‘‘Combating 

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1 the Silent Epidemic of Viral Hepatitis: Action Plan 

2 for the Prevention, Care & Treatment of Viral Hepa3 titis’’. 

4 (16) The annual health care costs attributable 

5 to viral hepatitis in the United States are signifi6 cant. For HBV, it is estimated to be approximately 

7 $2,500,000,000 ($2,000 per infected person). In 

8 2000, the lifetime cost of HBV—before the avail9 ability of most current therapies—was approximately 

10 $80,000 per chronically infected person, totaling 

11 more than $100,000,000,000. For HCV, medical 

12 costs for patients are expected to increase from 

13 $30,000,000,000 in 2009 to over $85,000,000,000 

14 in 2024. Avoiding these costs by screening and diag15 nosing individuals earlier—and connecting them to 

16 appropriate treatment and care will save lives and 

17 critical health care dollars. Currently, without a 

18 comprehensive screening, testing, and diagnosis pro19 gram, most patients are diagnosed too late when 

20 they need a liver transplant costing at least 

21 $314,000 for uncomplicated cases or when they have 

22 liver cancer or end-stage liver disease which costs be23 tween $30,980 to $110,576 per hospital admission. 

24 As health care costs continue to grow, it is critical 

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1 that the Federal Government invests in effective 

2 mechanisms to avoid documented cost drivers. 

3 (17) According to the Institute of Medicine re4 port in 2010, ‘‘Hepatitis and Liver Cancer: A Na5 tional Strategy for Prevention and Control of Hepa6 titis B and C’’, chronic HBV and HCV infections 

7 cause substantial morbidity and mortality despite 

8 being preventable and treatable. Deficiencies in the 

9 implementation of established guidelines for the pre10 vention, diagnosis, and medical management of 

11 chronic HBV and HCV infections perpetuate per12 sonal and economic burdens. Existing grants are not 

13 sufficient to address the scale of the health burden 

14 presented by HBV and HCV. 

15 (18) The Secretary of Health and Human Serv16 ices has the discretion to carry out this Act directly 

17 and through whichever of the agencies of the Public 

18 Health Service the Secretary determines to be ap19 propriate, which may (in the Secretary’s discretion) 

20 include the Centers for Disease Control and Preven21 tion, the Health Resources and Services Administra22 tion, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Serv23 ices Administration, the National Institutes of 

24 Health (including the National Institute on Minority 

25 Health and Health Disparities), and other agencies. 

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1 (19) For over a decade, the Centers for Disease 

2 Control and Prevention’s Viral Hepatitis Prevention 

3 Coordinator (VHPC) Program has been the only na4 tional program dedicated to the prevention and con5 trol of the viral hepatitis epidemics administering 

6 the duties currently specified by section 317N of the 

7 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247b–15) at 

8 State and local health departments. VHPCs provide 

9 the technical expertise necessary for the manage10 ment and coordination of activities to prevent viral 

11 hepatitis infection and disease with little to no Fed12 eral funding for program implementation or develop13 ment. Further, these coordinators help integrate 

14 viral hepatitis prevention services into health care 

15 settings and public health programs that serve 

16 adults at risk for viral hepatitis. 

17 SEC. 3. REVISION AND EXTENSION OF HEPATITIS SURVEIL18 LANCE, EDUCATION, AND TESTING PROGRAM. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 317N of the Public 

20 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247b–15) is amended— 

21 (1) by amending the section heading to read as 

22 follows: ‘‘SURVEILLANCE, EDUCATION, TESTING, 

23 AND LINKAGE TO CARE REGARDING HEPATITIS

24 VIRUS’’; 

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1 (2) by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as 

2 subsections (d) and (e), respectively; and 

3 (3) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, in accord6 ance with this section, carry out surveillance, education, 

7 and testing programs with respect to hepatitis B and hep8 atitis C virus infections (referred to in this section as 

9 ‘HBV’ and ‘HCV’, respectively). The Secretary may carry 

10 out such programs directly and through grants to public 

11 and nonprofit private entities, including States, political 

12 subdivisions of States, territories, Indian tribes, and pub13 lic-private partnerships. 

14 ‘‘(b) NATIONAL SYSTEM.—In carrying out subsection 

15 (a), the Secretary shall, in consultation with States and 

16 other public or nonprofit private entities and public-pri17 vate partnerships described in subsection (d), establish a 

18 national system with respect to HBV and HCV with the 

19 following goals: 

20 ‘‘(1) To determine the incidence and prevalence 

21 of such infections, including providing for the report22 ing of acute and chronic cases. 

23 ‘‘(2) With respect to the individuals who are 

24 tested for such an infection, to demonstrate success 

25 in increasing the number of individuals tested and 

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1 made aware of their status, including those who test 

2 positive. 

3 ‘‘(3) To develop and disseminate public infor4 mation and education programs for the detection 

5 and control of such infections. 

6 ‘‘(4) To improve the education, training, and 

7 skills of health professionals in the detection, con8 trol, and care and treatment, of such infections. 

9 ‘‘(5) To provide appropriate referrals for coun10 seling and medical care and treatment of infected in11 dividuals and to ensure, to the extent practicable, 

12 the provision of appropriate followup services. 

13 ‘‘(c) HIGH-RISK POPULATIONS; CHRONIC CASES.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall deter15 mine the populations that, for purposes of this sec16 tion, are considered at high-risk for HBV or HCV. 

17 The Secretary shall include the following among 

18 those considered at high-risk: 

19 ‘‘(A) For HBV, individuals born in coun20 tries in which 2 percent or more of the popu21 lation has HBV or who are a part of a high22 risk category as identified by the Centers for 

23 Disease Control and Prevention and the United 

24 States Preventive Services Task Force. 

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1 ‘‘(B) For HCV, individuals born between 

2 1945 and 1965 or who are a part of a high-risk 

3 category as identified by the Centers for Dis4 ease Control and Prevention and the United 

5 States Preventive Services Task Force. 

6 ‘‘(C) Those who have been exposed to the 

7 blood of infected individuals or of high-risk in8 dividuals or who are family members of such in9 dividuals. 

10 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY IN PROGRAMS.—In providing for 

11 programs under this section, the Secretary shall give 

12 priority— 

13 ‘‘(A) to early diagnosis of chronic cases of 

14 HBV or HCV in high-risk populations under 

15 paragraph (1); and 

16 ‘‘(B) to education, and referrals for coun17 seling and medical care and treatment, for indi18 viduals diagnosed under subparagraph (A) in 

19 order to— 

20 ‘‘(i) reduce their risk of dying from 

21 end-stage liver disease and liver cancer, 

22 and of transmitting the infection to others; 

23 ‘‘(ii) determine the appropriateness 

24 for treatment to reduce the risk of progres25 sion to cirrhosis and liver cancer; 

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1 ‘‘(iii) receive ongoing medical manage2 ment, including regular monitoring of liver 

3 function and screenings for liver cancer; 

4 ‘‘(iv) receive, as appropriate, drug, al5 cohol abuse, and mental health treatment; 

6 ‘‘(v) in the case of women of child7 bearing age, receive education on how to 

8 prevent HBV perinatal infection, and to al9 leviate fears associated with pregnancy or 

10 raising a family; and 

11 ‘‘(vi) receive such other services as the 

12 Secretary determines to be appropriate. 

13 ‘‘(3) CULTURAL CONTEXT.—In providing for 

14 services pursuant to paragraph (2) for individuals 

15 who are diagnosed under subparagraph (A) of such 

16 paragraph, the Secretary shall seek to ensure that 

17 the services are provided in a culturally and linguis18 tically appropriate manner. 

19 ‘‘(d) ACTION PLAN IMPLEMENTATION.— 

20 ‘‘(1) BENCHMARKS.—The Secretary shall de21 velop benchmarks for evaluating the effectiveness of 

22 the programs and activities conducted under the ‘Ac23 tion Plan for the Prevention, Care, & Treatment of 

24 Viral Hepatitis’ of the Department of Health and 

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1 Human Services and make determinations as to 

2 whether such benchmarks have been achieved. 

3 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORTING.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

5 report annually to the Congress on the bench6 marks developed under paragraph (1), including 

7 the amount of funding used by each agency of 

8 the Department of Health and Human Services 

9 to achieve each benchmark. 

10 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each report under sub11 paragraph (A) shall include reporting on— 

12 ‘‘(i) the number of people tested for 

13 hepatitis B and hepatitis C; 

14 ‘‘(ii) the number of individuals who 

15 test positive for hepatitis B and C; 

16 ‘‘(iii) the number of individuals who 

17 are tested and then made aware of their 

18 health status; 

19 ‘‘(iv) the number of individuals re20 ferred to care or treatment followup; 

21 ‘‘(v) improvements in surveillance ac22 tivities; 

23 ‘‘(vi) provider and community edu24 cation activities; 

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1 ‘‘(vii) the reduction in the number of 

2 infants born with hepatitis B; 

3 ‘‘(viii) estimates on the reduction, as 

4 a result of prevention measures, in the 

5 number of new hepatitis B and hepatitis C 

6 infections; and 

7 ‘‘(ix) estimates on the reduction in 

8 liver cancer resulting from hepatitis B or 

9 hepatitis C infection. 

10 ‘‘(e) PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this sec12 tion, and not later than 60 days after the date of 

13 the enactment of the Viral Hepatitis Testing Act of 

14 2015, the Secretary shall, in consultation with the 

15 Assistant Secretary for Health, the Director of the 

16 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the 

17 Health Resources and Services Administration, the 

18 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Ad19 ministration, the Office of Minority Health, the In20 dian Health Service, other relevant agencies, and 

21 nongovernment stakeholder entities, establish and 

22 support public-private partnerships that facilitate 

23 the surveillance, education, screening, testing, and 

24 linkage to care programs authorized by this section. 

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1 ‘‘(2) DUTIES.—Public-private partnerships es2 tablished or supported under paragraph (1) shall— 

3 ‘‘(A) focus primarily on the surveillance, 

4 education, screening, testing, and linkage to 

5 care programs authorized by this section; 

6 ‘‘(B) generate resources, in addition to the 

7 funds made available pursuant to subsection 

8 (f), to carry out the surveillance, education, 

9 screening, testing, and linkage to care programs 

10 authorized in this section by leveraging Federal 

11 funding with non-Federal funding and support; 

12 ‘‘(C) allow for investments in such pro13 grams of financial or in-kind resources by each 

14 of the partners involved in the partnership; 

15 ‘‘(D) include corporate and industry enti16 ties, academic institutions, public and nonprofit 

17 organizations, community and faith-based orga18 nizations, foundations, and other governmental 

19 and nongovernmental organizations; and 

20 ‘‘(E) advance the core goals of each of the 

21 partners of the partnership as determined by 

22 the Secretary in development of the partner23 ship. 

24 ‘‘(3) ANNUAL REPORTS.—The Secretary shall 

25 provide to the Congress an annual report on the 

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1 public-private partnerships established under this 

2 subsection. Each such report shall include— 

3 ‘‘(A) the number of public-private partner4 ships established; 

5 ‘‘(B) specific and quantifiable information 

6 on the surveillance, education, screening, test7 ing, and linkage to care activities conducted as 

8 well as the outcomes achieved through each of 

9 the public-private partnerships; 

10 ‘‘(C) the amount of Federal funding or re11 sources dedicated to the public-private partner12 ships; 

13 ‘‘(D) the amount of non-Federal funding 

14 or resources leveraged through the public-pri15 vate partnerships; and 

16 ‘‘(E) a plan for the following year that out17 lines future activities. 

18 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION.—No more than 25 percent of 

19 the funds made available to carry out this section 

20 may be used for public-private partnerships estab21 lished or supported under this subsection. 

22 ‘‘(5) LINKAGE TO CARE.—For purposes of this 

23 section, the term ‘linkage to care’ means, with re24 spect to an individual with a diagnosis of HBV or 

25 HCV, the referral of such individual to clinical care 

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1 for a thorough evaluation of their clinical status to 

2 determine the need for treatment, vaccination for 

3 HBV, or other therapy. 

4 ‘‘(f) AGENCY FOR HEALTHCARE RESEARCH AND

5 QUALITY HBV AND HCV GUIDELINES.—Due to the rap6 idly evolving standard of care associated with diagnosing 

7 and treating viral hepatitis infection, the Director of the 

8 Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality shall convene 

9 the United States Preventive Services Task Force under 

10 section 915(a) to review its recommendation for screening 

11 for HBV and HCV infection every 3 years. 

12 ‘‘(g) FUNDING.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to any amounts 

14 otherwise authorized by this Act, there are author15 ized to be appropriated to carry out this section— 

16 ‘‘(A) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2016; 

17 ‘‘(B) $35,000,000 for fiscal year 2017; and 

18 ‘‘(C) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2018. 

19 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.—Of the amounts appropriated 

20 pursuant to paragraph (1) for a fiscal year, the Sec21 retary shall reserve not less than 80 percent for 

22 making grants under subsection (a). 

23 ‘‘(3) SOURCE OF FUNDS.—The funds made 

24 available to carry out this section shall be derived 

25 exclusively from the funds appropriated or otherwise 

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1 made available for planning and evaluation under 

2 this Act.’’. 

3 (b) SAVINGS PROVISION.—The amendments made by 

4 this section shall not be construed to require termination 

5 of any program or activity carried out by the Secretary 

6 of Health and Human Services under section 317N of the 

7 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247b–15) as in ef8 fect on the day before the date of the enactment of this 

9 Act. 

10 SEC. 4. HEPATITIS B AND HEPATITIS C SCREENING AND 

11 EVALUATION OF NEEDED CARE FOR VET12 ERANS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 17 of 

14 title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

15 end the following: 

16 ‘‘§ 1720H. Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C screening and 

17 evaluation of needed care for veterans 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) The Secretary shall establish 

19 and carry out a plan to provide veterans described in para20 graph (2) with— 

21 ‘‘(A) a risk assessment for the hepatitis B and 

22 hepatitis C virus; and 

23 ‘‘(B) if a veteran is diagnosed with such virus— 

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1 ‘‘(i) a thorough evaluation of the clinical 

2 status of the veteran to determine the need for 

3 treatment, vaccination, or other therapy; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) information with respect to the needs 

5 determined under clause (i). 

6 ‘‘(2) Veterans described in this paragraph are vet7 erans who— 

8 ‘‘(A) are enrolled in the health care system es9 tablished under section 1705(a) of this title; 

10 ‘‘(B) were born between 1945 and 1965; and 

11 ‘‘(C) are considered a high-risk group for hepa12 titis B or hepatitis C infection. 

13 ‘‘(b) COMPLIANCE.—(1) The Secretary shall use the 

14 plan established under subsection (a)(1) as a key measure 

15 in determining performance under the VA Handbook Per16 formance Management System, or the successor to such 

17 handbook, to ensure the compliance of such plan. 

18 ‘‘(2) If the Secretary determines that a medical facil19 ity of the Department complies with the plan established 

20 under subsection (a)(1) at a rate less than 100 percent, 

21 the Secretary shall treat the director of such medical facil22 ity as ‘less than fully successful’ with respect to the per23 formance appraisal that is used for the basis for deter24 mining performance awards under the handbook described 

25 in paragraph (1). 

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1 ‘‘(c) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Secretary shall submit 

2 annually to Congress a report on the compliance of each 

3 medical facility of the Department with the plan estab4 lished under subsection (a)(1).’’. 

5 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

6 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting 

7 after the item relating to section 1720G the following new 

8 item: 

‘‘1720H. Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C screening and evaluation of needed care 

for veterans.’’. 

Æ 

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