What to know
May is Hepatitis Awareness Month. This observance serves as a time to raise awareness about hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C while encouraging testing, vaccination, and timely treatment. Viral hepatitis is a major public health threat and worse, hundreds of thousands of people in the United States don't know they are infected. Work with us to remind everyone that hepatitis A and hepatitis B can be prevented, and hepatitis C can be cured.
Why it's important
Hepatitis A and hepatitis B are vaccine preventable and hepatitis C can be cured.
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A infection usually causes a mild, short-term illness. Vaccination is the best way to prevent infection.
Hepatitis B and hepatitis C
Many people with hepatitis B virus won't experience symptoms and likewise, many people with hepatitis C don't look or feel sick. In either case they might not know they have the virus. Left untreated, both infections can cause serious health problems, including liver damage, cirrhosis, liver cancer, and even death. Getting tested is the only way to know you have either virus.
Although there is no cure for hepatitis B, treatments are available that can delay or reduce the risk of developing liver cancer.
There is currently no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C, but curative treatments are available. Most people with hepatitis C can be cured with just 8–12 weeks of well-tolerated oral-only treatment. Testing is the first step.
Our story
The purpose of Hepatitis Awareness Month is to educate health care practitioners and the public about the importance of vaccination against hepatitis A and hepatitis B and the importance of testing and treatment for hepatitis B and hepatitis C.
Each May we bring prominent viral hepatitis issues to the forefront by leveraging social media, sending direct communications to key stakeholders, and promoting informative webinars.
Themes
In 2024 we focused on three themes. Although May 2024 has passed, you can still educate others all year long by highlighting the importance of:
- Reaching key populations and high-impact settings: Increasing access to vaccination, testing, and treatment to key populations and settings can prevent the spread of viral hepatitis.
- Protecting young families and pregnant persons: CDC recommends screening all pregnant patients for hepatitis B and hepatitis C.
- Accelerating hepatitis C point-of-care testing to expand test-to-cure: Hepatitis C is a deadly disease. Point of care testing can build the bridge to life-saving treatment.
Webinars
Viral hepatitis impacts some segments of the population harder than others. In order to bring these disparities to light, we promoted and participated in the following webinars this year
- The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) hosted a webinar May 7 titled: "Novel approaches to bringing viral hepatitis care to people with substance use disorder." Watch here.
- The Bureau of Primary Health Care (NPHC) hosted a webinar May 14 titled: "The Role of Community Health Centers in Eliminating Hepatitis C in the United States." Watch here.
- The American Liver Foundation (ALF) hosted a webinar May 16 titled: "Updates on Hepatitis B & C for Patients." Watch here.
- The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID), the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) and the Hepatitis B Foundation hosted a webinar May 21 titled: "Preventing hepatitis B infection in US Adults." Register here to access the webinar recording.
Get involved
- Learn more about CDC's commitment to eliminating viral hepatitis in the US.
- Share the National Hepatitis Testing Day 2024 White House Proclamation.
- Watch and share this webinar on CDC's recommendation for hepatitis C testing among perinatally exposed infants and children.
- Share the ABCs of Viral Hepatitis to help others learn facts about the three most common types of viral hepatitis in the US.
- Register your testing services by visiting GetTested: CDC's National HIV, STD, and Hepatitis Testing site and filling out the online form.