World hepatitis day. Fighting hepatitis C in Latin America and the Caribbean; an urgent call

• Published in: Journal of the International AIDS Society Vol. 20; no. 1; pp. 22183 - n/a
• Main Author: Soto‐Ramirez, Luis Enrique
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland International AIDS Society 2017; John Wiley & Sons, Inc; Taylor & Francis
• Subjects: Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; AIDS; Analysis; Corruption; Drugs; Epidemiology; Estimates; Health aspects; Health services; Hepatitis; Hepatitis C; Hepatitis C virus; HIV; Human immunodeficiency virus; Infection; Medical research; Nosocomial infections; Pharmaceutical industry; Population; Prevention; Public health; Viewpoint; Mexico; Latin America; Colombia; Argentina; Caribbean area; United States > US; Uruguay; Brazil; Paraguay
• ISSN: 1758-2652; 1758-2652
• DOI: 10.7448/IAS.20.1.22183

According to data from Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Paraguay and Uruguay, 67% of the IDU population have anti‐HCV antibodies; unfortunately this group has poor access to health services [ 2]. [...]the high cost of the new medications is the main factor that contributes to limit their accessibility; more cost‐effective studies are needed to demonstrate this, as many decision‐makers are not aware of the benefits. [...]we need a political commitment to include these drugs in the region, but unfortunately, corruption, lack of future planning and specially the absence of a public‐health approach of many governments, as well as financial problems, are dramatically limiting the access to DAAs. Since the first World Hepatitis Day in 2010, WHO, PAHO and many others have pushed for better and comprehensive diagnosis and care for individuals with any type of hepatitis.