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“We need a call to arms to take action now to eradicate HCV from the planet. We have the tools and we have the ability to do something. To not do this is a crime and tragic. I ask you, my colleagues, to wake up others, organize, and make the push — Now and with great urgency.”
We’ve known for a long time that hepatitis C virus infection is a major cause of death in the United States; in fact, we now have evidence from the CDC that, among infectious diseases, it is the lead killer.
The best way to think about this new announcement is to consider a hypothetical new infection is the leading cause of death and in the hypothetical, there’s no treatment. How would our nation react if there were no treatment available? There would be panic and concern and we would be closing our borders. Think about the reaction to Ebola, which had a small impact on the United States and ‘only’ killed thousands in Africa.
Instead, HCV kills millions and has a very real, curative treatment. Through intense work over 20 years, we have an understanding of the epidemic and knowledge of how to intervene. Further, we have drugs that are not only effective, they’re remarkably effective in eradicating the virus from, and thereby curing, an infected individual. Finally, we have the know-how to find people who are infected, get them into care and cure them. The questions now are: What are the barriers? Why are we not getting those effected into care and curing them? And why are we not doing it with great urgency?
Why don’t we take advantage of a positive opportunity and make some good of it?