What Stands in the Way of Making Hepatitis B and C Rare Diseases in the United States?
Authors: Gillian J. Buckley, Brian L. Strom
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2016)

Ideas and Opinions16 August 2016What Stands in the Way of Making Hepatitis B and C Rare Diseases in the United States?Gillian J. Buckley, PhD, MPH and Brian L. Strom, MD, MPHGillian J. Buckley, PhD, MPHFrom the Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice, Division of Health and Medicine, Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Washington, DC, and Rutgers Biomedical & Health Sciences, Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, New Jersey.Search for more papers by this author and Brian L. Strom, MD, MPHFrom the Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice, Division of Health and Medicine, Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Washington, DC, and Rutgers Biomedical & Health Sciences, Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, New Jersey.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M16-0772 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) account for most of the world's chronic viral hepatitis, killing more people every year than road traffic injuries, HIV/AIDS, or diabetes (1). Despite accounting for massive suffering and early death, viral hepatitis garners relatively little national or international attention. Whereas deaths from malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS have decreased since the early 2000s, deaths attributable to viral hepatitis continue to rise (1). Hepatitis B and C kill about 20 000 people every year in the United States and more than 1 million worldwide (2, 3).These deaths could be averted. The world has ...References1. Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. GBD Compare. Seattle: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington; 2015. Accessed at http://vizhub.healthdata.org/gbd-compare on 16 February 2016. Google Scholar2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Viral Hepatitis Surveillance: United States, 2013. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2013. Accessed at www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/statistics/2013surveillance/pdfs/2013hepsurveillancerpt.pdf on 5 April 2016. Google Scholar3. World Health Organization. The case for investing in the elimination of hepatitis B and C as public health problems by 2030. WHO Brief. 2016. [Forthcoming]. Google Scholar4. Feld JJ, Jacobson IM, Hézode C, Asselah T, Ruane PJ, Gruener N, et al; ASTRAL-1 Investigators. Sofosbuvir and velpatasvir for HCV genotype 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 infection. N Engl J Med. 2015;373:2599-607. [PMID: 26571066] doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1512610 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Foster GR, Afdhal N, Roberts SK, Bräu N, Gane EJ, Pianko S, et al; ASTRAL-2 Investigators. Sofosbuvir and velpatasvir for HCV genotype 2 and 3 infection. N Engl J Med. 2015;373:2608-17. [PMID: 26575258] doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1512612 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Eliminating the Public Health Problem of Hepatitis B and C in the United States. Washington, DC: National Academies Pr; 2016. Accessed at www.nas.edu/HepatitisElimination on 11 April 2016. Google Scholar7. Wiseman E, Fraser MA, Holden S, Glass A, Kidson BL, Heron LG, et al. Perinatal transmission of hepatitis B virus: an Australian experience. Med J Aust. 2009;190:489-92. [PMID: 19413519] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar8. Greenup AJ, Tan PK, Nguyen V, Glass A, Davison S, Chatterjee U, et al. Efficacy and safety of tenofovir disoproxil fumarate in pregnancy to prevent perinatal transmission of hepatitis B virus. J Hepatol. 2014;61:502-7. [PMID: 24801414] doi:10.1016/j.jhep.2014.04.038 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar9. Barua S, Greenwald R, Grebely J, Dore GJ, Swan T, Taylor LE. Restrictions for Medicaid reimbursement of sofosbuvir for the treatment of hepatitis C virus infection in the United States. Ann Intern Med. 2015;163:215-23. [PMID: 26120969]. doi:10.7326/M15-0406 LinkGoogle Scholar10. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Viral Hepatitis—Prevention and Surveillance 2015. 2015. Accessed at www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/index.cfm?switch=grant.view&gff_grants_forecastInfoID=100000600 on 9 February 2016.. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From the Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice, Division of Health and Medicine, Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Washington, DC, and Rutgers Biomedical & Health Sciences, Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, New Jersey.Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M16-0772.Corresponding Author: Gillian J. Buckley, PhD, MPH, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 500 Fifth Street NW, Washington, DC 20001; e-mail, [email protected]edu.Current Author Addresses: Dr. Buckley: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 500 Fifth Street NW, Washington, DC 20001.Dr. Strom: Rutgers Biomedical & Health Sciences, Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey, 65 Bergen Street, Suite 1535, Newark, NJ 07103.Author Contributions: Conception and design: B.L. Strom.Drafting of the article: G.J. Buckley.Critical revision for important intellectual content: B.L. Strom.Final approval of the article: G.J. Buckley, B.L. Strom.This article was published at www.annals.org on 12 April 2016. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics Cited byCharacteristics associated with hepatitis B vaccination initiation and completion among adults traveling to a country of high or intermediate endemicityAwareness of chronic viral hepatitis in the United States: An update from the National Health and Nutrition Examination SurveyNovel treatments for chronic hepatitis C: closing the remaining gapsRacial/ethnic disparities in the prevalence and awareness of Hepatitis B virus infection and immunity in the United StatesViral Hepatitis and Diabetes: Clinical Implications of Diabetes Prevention Through Hepatitis Vaccination 16 August 2016Volume 165, Issue 4Page: 284-285KeywordsDrugsHepatitisHepatitis AHepatitis BHepatitis CInfectious hepatitisMortalityPrevention, policy, and public healthProphylaxisVaccines ePublished: 12 April 2016 Issue Published: 16 August 2016 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2016 by American College of Physicians. 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