For immediate release: May 21, 2008 (08-078)

Contacts:
Wendy Dillon, Community and Family Health 360-236-3440
Gordon MacCracken, Communications Office 360-236-4072

Hepatitis: many people who are infected don’t know they have the disease
State, local organizations ramp-up efforts to boost testing, vaccination rates

OLYMPIA ¾ If you had a potentially deadly disease, wouldn’t you want to know?

In Washington, state and local organizations are working to make it easier to be checked for hepatitis and to avoid the disease in the first place.

There’s a reason for that. In Washington, it’s estimated that nearly 115,000 people are infected with hepatitis C and 28,000 with hepatitis B. Yet only 48,540 cases of hepatitis C and 18,649 cases of hepatitis B have been reported to public health.

"These low numbers of reported cases confirm that many of those who are infected in our state do not know it," said Wendy Dillon, adult viral hepatitis prevention coordinator with the state health agency’s Office of Infectious Disease and Reproductive Health.

Combined, statistics indicate hepatitis B and C kill 1.5 million people a year worldwide. Five hundred million people around the world are infected with hepatitis B or C, more than 10 times the number affected with HIV/AIDS. Most of those 500 million don’t know they’re infected.

One in 12 people in the world are living with hepatitis B or hepatitis C. So, the state Department of Health is working with the World Hepatitis Alliance and more than 200 public health and patient groups on a campaign to ask the question, "Am I Number 12?" (www.aminumber12.org).

The state health department is working with many county health agencies and community-based organizations to offer free hepatitis C testing and free hepatitis A and B vaccine to those at risk, beginning in June. The goal is to raise awareness about viral hepatitis and promote prevention.

Now providing hepatitis C testing are the Hepatitis Education Project in Seattle, Caring Ambassadors Hepatitis C Program in Vancouver, Blue Mountain Heart to Heart in Walla Walla, Skagit County Public Health Department in Mount Vernon, and Kittitas County Public Health in Ellensburg.

In June, hepatitis C testing will begin at Asotin County Health Department in Clarkston, Adams County Health Department in Ritzville, Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department in Tacoma, Island County Health Department in Coupeville, Clallam County Department of Health and Human Services in Port Angeles, Whatcom County Health Department in Bellingham, Wahkiakum County Health and Human Services in Cathlamet, Jefferson County Public Health in Port Townsend, and San Juan Health and Community Services in Friday Harbor.

Also beginning in June, free hepatitis A and B vaccine will be available to those at risk from the agencies in Asotin, Adams, Pierce, Island, Clallam, Kittitas, Whatcom, Wahkiakum, Jefferson, and San Juan counties.

Awareness of chronic viral hepatitis is less than that for HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria. May has been named National Hepatitis Awareness Month to overcome that and build the political will to tackle it. The number of people chronically infected with, and annually killed by, hepatitis B and C viruses is on the same scale as that of the other diseases.

To learn about the risks and how to get a free test or vaccine, contact the Adult Viral Hepatitis Prevention Program (www.doh.wa.gov/cfh/hepatitis), 1-866-917-4HEP (1-866-917-4437).

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