New CDC Data Reveal Less Than a Third of People Diagnosed with Hepatitis C Receive Timely Treatment for the Deadly, yet Curable, Infection

Large gaps in treatment persist nearly a decade after a highly effective cure for hepatitis C was approved

A new CDC Vital Signs report finds that too few people diagnosed with hepatitis C are being treated, despite availability of medications capable of curing this viral infection. According to CDC's estimates:

• Overall, less than 1 in 3 people with health insurance get direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatment for hepatitis C within a year of diagnosis.
• Treatment is lowest among patients in state-administered Medicaid plans, with less than 1 in 4 Medicaid recipients (23%) being treated within a year of diagnosis.
• Additionally, Medicaid recipients in states that restrict access to hepatitis C treatment are 23% less likely to receive treatment than Medicaid recipients in states without restrictions.

Hepatitis C is curable with well-tolerated, oral medication. Untreated, hepatitis C can cause liver disease, liver cancer, and death. Treatment prevents illness and death, stops spread of hepatitis C, and is cost-saving. In 2019, hepatitis C contributed to the deaths of more than 14,000 people in the United States.

• For the past several years, CDC's annual hepatitis C data have shown the highest rates of new infection among adults under 40, indicating that treating this group is critical. However, this new analysis found adults under 40 have the lowest treatment rates by age group.
• Among those under age 40, hepatitis C is most commonly spread through injection drug use.