Hepatitis C continues to be a significant public health burden with over 3.5 million Americans diagnosed with chronic Hepatitis C and with number of new infections nearly tripled since 2010. As national rates of HIV fall in response to tremendous HIV treatment and prevention efforts, hepatitis B and C rates continue to rise.
The CDC reports that hepatitis C infections have now surpassed all other nationally identifiable infectious conditions. Specifically in Washington, DC, the prevalence of HCV was estimated to be 2.7% of the population in 2015, indicating a local epidemic. Now that treatment is easier than ever, the DC Department of Health is urging primary care providers to engage in HCV treatment to increase cure rates in DC and lower overall disease burden and transmission.