Eliminating viral hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030 is a target set under the UN Sustainable Development Goal on Health (SDG 3.3) (1). Ahead of World Hepatitis Day on 28 July, the EUDA has released today an update of its interactive elimination barometer designed to support countries in monitoring their progress towards the elimination of viral hepatitis among people who inject drugs.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is the infectious disease associated with the highest burden of disease among people who inject drugs (PWID), the virus being easily transmitted through the sharing of needles and syringes. Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is also much more prevalent among PWID than in the general population. Despite the availability of new highly effective treatments for hepatitis C infection, access to testing and care for PWID remains limited. Moreover, HBV vaccination, OAT and NSP are still not reaching all people who would benefit from these life-saving and cost-saving prevention measures.
Through the barometer, public health workers, policymakers and other interested users can access data to gauge their country’s performance according to 11 epidemiological indicators. Readers can download data tables and infographics and view which countries have achieved the targets set. Monitoring data suggest that most European countries are lagging behind in meeting goals.
The European Drug Report 2024 stated that among the countries reporting to the EUDA, only Norway showed evidence that they had achieved an 80 % reduction in viraemic HCV prevalence among people who inject drugs between 2015 and 2022 (which is needed to achieve the WHO target for elimination by 2030).
The elimination barometer is part of a set of online resources published by the EUDA. These include the joint guidance with ECDC on Prevention and control of infectious diseases among people who inject drugs and the hepatitis C toolkit designed to help European countries beat viral hepatitis. They all outline the central role of harm reduction services for reaching the elimination of viral hepatitis as a public health threat.
This year, the theme of World Hepatitis Day is: 'It’s time for action'. According to the World Health Organization (WHO): 'With a person dying every 30 seconds from a hepatitis-related illness, there is a need to accelerate action on better prevention, diagnosis, and treatment to save lives and improve health outcomes'.
