1 in 4 people living with HIV will become infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) during their lifetime. The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program has a major role to play in helping to eliminate HCV among people living with HIV, which is explored in the new issue brief, Eliminating Hepatitis C among People Living with HIV in the United States: Leveraging the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program to Move Us Forward.
In the issue brief, Sonia Canzater and Jeffrey S. Crowley of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown Law, explain how the path to systematically eliminating HCV can be achieved. Informed by a 2018 consultation with people with HIV and HCV, medical and non-medical providers, and federal and state policy and program staff, the policy researchers identify four priority actions:
- Comprehensive efforts to overcome financial, clinical, and other barriers to treatment
- Better metrics for tracking progress toward elimination
- Increased emphasis on re-screening of key populations
- Strengthened planning and commitment to HCV elimination in states, communities, and clinics
These recommendations work in tandem with actions the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Health Resources and Services Administration are taking to respond to HCV among people living with HIV.
