World Hepatitis Day 2020 – looking forward to a #HepFreeFuture

28 July 2020

For World Hepatitis Day 2020, WHO is focusing on the achievable dream of a hepatitis free future and reminding the world that it is vital to maintain services, including during the COVID-19 pandemic, to keep the WHO European Region moving towards this goal. This means leaving no one behind and expanding access to testing and treatment, especially for people who may be underserved, such as prison inmates or people who use drugs. It is vital to ensure uninterrupted hepatitis B vaccination programmes and to scale up hepatitis B and C testing and treatment services.

As part of the celebrations, a “Compendium of good practice” will be published highlighting country innovations and successes in hepatitis prevention, care and treatment. A webinar showcasing stories from the compendium will be held on 27 July. For details of how to join the webinar contact eurohep@who.int.

Globally, 325 million people are living with chronic hepatitis B and C. They affect 15 million and 14 million people respectively in the European Region, and are root causes of liver scarring (cirrhosis) and liver cancer. These conditions lead to over 170 000 deaths every year in the Region, which could be prevented by timely testing and treatment and, in the case of hepatitis B, vaccination.

Join the WHO campaign for World Hepatitis Day 2020 on social media using the hashtags #HepFreeFuture and #WorldHepatitisDay.