IV 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 390 
Recognizing July 28, 2015, as ‘‘World Hepatitis Day’’. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 28, 2015 
Mr. HONDA (for himself, Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. DENT, Mr. MEEKS, Mrs. 
NAPOLITANO, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. JOHNSON 
of Georgia, Ms. NORTON, Mr. TAKANO, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Ms. 
JACKSON LEE, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Ms. 
JUDY CHU of California, and Mr. FATTAH) submitted the following reso-
lution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
RESOLUTION 
Recognizing July 28, 2015, as ‘‘World Hepatitis Day’’. 
Whereas hepatitis B and hepatitis C, and the incidence of 
liver disease caused by these viruses, have become urgent 
problems of a global proportion; 
Whereas an estimated 350,000,000 people worldwide live 
with chronic hepatitis B, and an estimated 780,000 peo-
ple worldwide die each year due to hepatitis B; 
Whereas an estimated 150,000,000 people worldwide are 
chronically infected with hepatitis C, and an estimated 
500,000 people worldwide die each year due to a liver- 
related illness caused by hepatitis C; 
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•HRES 390 IH 
Whereas an estimated 1,000,000 people worldwide die each 
year due to liver failure or primary liver cancer resulting 
from a chronic infection of hepatitis; 
Whereas an estimated 5,300,000 people in the United States 
are infected with either hepatitis B or hepatitis C, includ-
ing 1,400,000 people who are chronically infected with 
hepatitis B and 2,700,000 people who are chronically in-
fected with hepatitis C; 
Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (re-
ferred to in this preamble as ‘‘CDC’’) estimated that 
there were 19,764 new hepatitis B infections and 29,718 
new hepatitis C infections, respectively, in the United 
States in 2013; 
Whereas the CDC has found significant increases in the 
transmission of new hepatitis cases in the United States 
since 2010, including a 151 percent increase between 
2010 and 2013 in new transmissions of hepatitis C in the 
United States; 
Whereas chronic viral hepatitis claims thousands of lives each 
year in the United States, with 19,368 deaths due to 
hepatitis C in the United States in 2013; 
Whereas, in 2014, $4,500,000,000 in Medicare funds were 
spent on hepatitis C treatments; 
Whereas a person who has become chronically infected with 
hepatitis B or hepatitis C may not have symptoms for up 
to 40 years after the initial infection occurred; 
Whereas African-Americans, Asian Americans, Pacific Island-
ers, Latinos, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, gay and 
bisexual men, and persons who inject drugs intravenously 
all have higher rates of chronic viral hepatitis infections 
in the United States than other groups of people; 
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•HRES 390 IH 
Whereas Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders bear the 
greatest burden of hepatitis B related deaths in the 
United States; 
Whereas hepatitis C is 10 times more infectious than human 
immunodeficiency virus (referred to in this preamble as 
‘‘HIV’’); 
Whereas hepatitis B is 50 to 100 times more infectious than 
HIV; 
Whereas an estimated 25 percent of people who live in the 
United States and are infected with HIV are also in-
fected with hepatitis C; 
Whereas life expectancies for persons infected with HIV have 
increased with antiretroviral treatment, and liver disease, 
much of which is related to hepatitis B and hepatitis C 
infections, has become the most common cause of death 
among this population that is not related to acquired im-
mune deficiency syndrome; 
Whereas, despite the fact that chronic viral hepatitis is the 
most common blood-borne infection in the United States, 
65 percent of people living with hepatitis B and an esti-
mated 75 percent of people living with hepatitis C are 
unaware of their infection; 
Whereas hepatitis B is preventable through vaccination, and 
both hepatitis B and hepatitis C are preventable with 
proper public health interventions, including programs 
that offer access to sterile injection equipment for people 
who inject drugs intravenously; 
Whereas effective and safe treatment is available for people 
living with hepatitis B and hepatitis C, including new cu-
rative treatments for hepatitis C; and 
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•HRES 390 IH 
Whereas the goals of ‘‘World Hepatitis Day’’ on July 28, 
2015, are to— 
(1) highlight the global nature of chronic viral hepa-
titis epidemics; 
(2) recognize that hepatitis can be prevented and 
eliminated in part through a comprehensive public edu-
cation and awareness campaign designed to identify those 
at risk for, and living with, hepatitis; 
(3) inform patients about new treatments that are 
available for hepatitis; and 
(4) help increase the length and quality of life for 
people diagnosed with chronic hepatitis B and hepatitis 
C infections: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) recognizes ‘‘World Hepatitis Day’’; 
(2) supports broad access to hepatitis B and 
hepatitis C treatments; 
(3) supports raising awareness of the risks and 
consequences of undiagnosed chronic hepatitis B and 
hepatitis C infections; and 
(4) calls for a robust governmental and public 
health response to protect the health of the approxi-
mately 5,000,000 people in the United States and 
400,000,000 people worldwide who suffer from 
chronic viral hepatitis. 
Æ 
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