The AIDS Institute Commends Congress for Reintroduction of Hep C Legislation

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The AIDS Institute Commends Congress for Reintroduction of Hepatitis C

Legislation

 

Washington,DC

 

– The AIDS Institute (TAI) commends the introduction of bills in both the US

Senate and House of Representatives designed to help combat the nation’s growing

hepatitis C epidemic (HVC).

 

Introduced by Senators Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-TX) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) on

Thursday, March 3, and Representatives Heather Wilson (R-NM) and Ed Towns

(D-NY), on Monday, March 14, S. 521 and H.R. 1290, the Hepatitis C Epidemic

Control and Prevention Act, aim to “establish, promote, and support a

comprehensive prevention, research, and medical management referral program for

hepatitis C virus infection.”

 

“We commend these members of Congress for re-introducing these important bills”

notes Dr. Gene Copello, executive director of The AIDS Institute. “With some 4

to 5 million people in the US infected with hepatitis C, including one third of

people living with HIV, it’s vitally important that the federal government

provide, for the first time, a focus on hepatitis C.”

 

 

 

The legislation mandates the creation and implementation of a “plan for the

prevention, control, and medical management of hepatitis C which includes

strategies for education and training, surveillance and early detection, and

research. "

 

 

As part of this legislation, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS)

would be charged with developing the national plan with input provided by the

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Institutes of Health

(NIH), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and directors of

related federal agencies and offices that provide services to persons living

with HCV. Moreover, the plan will include input from persons living with the

virus.

 

“We join other healthcare advocates in asking Congress and President Bush to

take a leadership role in fighting hepatitis C by supporting this legislation

and providing the necessary funding to carry out the hepatitis C prevention,

surveillance, treatment and research outlined in the bills,” details TAI of Federal Affairs Carl Schmid. He concludes, “The cost of not

addressing HCV in our communities far out weighs any monetary costs of

implementing a comprehensive program to address the most common blood borne

viral infection in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention (CDC)

 

· Of the 4 to 5 million infected with hepatitis C (HCV) in the US, 2.7

million are chronically infected

 

· Chronic HCV accounts for 40 to 60% of liver disease and is the leading

cause of liver transplants in the US· HCV results in approximately

10,000 deaths each year – a number which could double by the year 2020·

80% of those infected with HCV do not experience any symptoms and many people

are unaware of their infection until chronic liver disease develops 10-20 years

after infection· Roughly 1/3 of the nearly one million Americans living

with HIV/AIDS are co-infected with HCV· HCV-liver disease related

complications are quickly becoming a leading cause of death for people with

HIV/AIDS· 2.4 to 2.7 million people chronically infected with HCV are

not receiving treatment

 

 

 

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