Here You Can Read About A New Focus on Hepatitis

  The White House’s budget request to Congress included an $11 billion ask to tackle the spread of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) over the next five years.  Though it’s not a crisis that’s well-known or understood, public health efforts in the last 10 years have made strides toward prevention and treatment.  Direct-acting antivirals developed less than a decade ago have been proven effective in 95 percent of the people who take a curative pill for 8 to 12 weeks.  The challenge has been getting infected persons in for diagnosis and moving them toward treatment.  For rural communities, the rise in prevalence has been labeled epidemic and closely related to injection drug use. Data show a substantial number of people are unaware they’re infected; of those with some kind of public or private insurance, only a third are actually treated.  Left untreated, HCV can lead to liver failure, cancer, and death.  The proposed federal program includes a significant push for screening and treatment – accelerating the availability of point-of-care diagnostic tests and providing broad access to medication – with a focus on populations at greatest risk for infection: Medicaid beneficiaries, justice-involved populations, people without insurance, and American Indian and Alaska Native individuals who are treated through the Indian Health Service. Also last week: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated recommendations for hepatitis B virus screening and testing.  Considered more common than HCV, hepatitis B causes more liver-related cancer and death.

The post Here You Can Read About A New Focus on Hepatitis appeared first on Pennsylvania Office of Rural Health.

Recommend0 recommendationsPublished in My Healthy Pennsylvania, Rural Health PA

Related Articles

5 Essential Frameworks for Preventing Violent Child Death

The U.S. has a violent child death problem. Developing strategies to prevent violent child deaths death from firearms and traffic crashes is a demanding task that requires consideration of numerous upstream, interrelated, and tangential issues. To help safety advocates develop strategies to prevent violent child death, we compiled five frameworks to help: Understand and explain …
The post 5 Essential Frameworks for Preventing Violent Child Death appeared first on Salud America.

What Are the Risk and Protective Factors for Violent Child Death?

Gun violence and traffic crashes may seem like unpredictable events. But they are not random. They are systematic. Data reveal trends and patterns in gun violence and traffic crashes that can help us identify risk factors and protective factors. This is especially important for addressing violent child deaths. So what does the data show? Join …
The post What Are the Risk and Protective Factors for Violent Child Death? appeared first on Salud America.

The State of Liver Cancer in Latinos

We know many types of cancer deeply and disproportionately affect U.S. Latinos.   Liver cancer is a particular problem.   In fact, Latinos have the second-highest rate of dying from liver cancer among racial/ethnic groups, according to the CDC.  Let’s examine the data and unpack this rising crisis for Latinos.   What is Liver Cancer?   The liver has …
The post The State of Liver Cancer in Latinos appeared first on Salud America.

Did Americans Suddenly Become Worse Drivers or Are Megacars Spiking Traffic Fatalities?

Driving is a daily danger to American life. And it is getting more dangerous. More Americans died in motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2021 than any other year since 2005, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Additionally, pedestrian fatalities are up 13% and bicyclist fatalities are up 5% compared to 2020. These are …
The post Did Americans Suddenly Become Worse Drivers or Are Megacars Spiking Traffic Fatalities? appeared first on Salud America.

The Need for Latino-Focused Parkinson’s Disease Research

Parkinson’s disease is a brain disorder that causes uncontrollable movements, such as shaking, stiffness, and difficulty with balance, according to the National Institute on Aging.  But what do you really know about Parkinson’s and your risk?  Let’s dive into the causes, symptoms, and treatment of Parkinson’s and how it impacts Latinos.   What Causes Parkinson’s Disease?  …
The post The Need for Latino-Focused Parkinson’s Disease Research appeared first on Salud America.