The World Hepatitis Summit 2022 will review progress and renew commitments by global partners to accelerate action to achieve the global target of eliminating of viral hepatitis by 2030.
At the 2016 World Health Assembly, countries made a historic commitment
to eliminate viral hepatitis by 2030. Since 2016, countries have met the global
2020 target of reducing the incidence of hepatitis B in children under 5 and
the number of people receiving treatment for hepatitis C has increased 10-fold.
However, most countries failed to meet other 2020 targets. Timely
access to the hepatitis B birth dose is still low in many low- and
middle-income countries. Meanwhile, lack of awareness, limited political
commitment, as well as stigma and discrimination continue to stop people
accessing testing and care. It is estimated 354 million people globally are
still living with this life-threatening infection and at least one person dies
from viral hepatitis every 30 seconds. That’s over 1 million deaths per year –
a greater toll than that from HIV and malaria combined.
“Hepatitis is one of the most devastating diseases on earth,
but it’s also one of the most preventable and treatable, with services that can
be delivered easily and cheaply at the primary health care level,” said Dr
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.
“Many of the reasons people miss out on those services are the
same reasons they miss out on services for other health challenges –
accessibility and affordability, because of who they are, where they live or
how much they earn. We call on all countries to commit to realising the dream
of eliminating viral hepatitis by 2030, as part of a broader commitment to
universal health coverage based on strong primary health care.”
Most recently, in the months
leading up to the Summit, some 700 cases of sudden and unexplained hepatitis in
young children have come under investigation in 34 countries.Symptoms of this
acute hepatitis come on quickly leading to a high proportion of children
developing liver failure with a few requiring liver transplants.
The Summit will showcase these epidemiologic updates and progress
towards the commitment to eliminate hepatitis by 2030. In June 2021, WHO
provided interim guidance on the criteria needs to achieve to be validated for
the elimination of Hepatitis B and C viruses. Seven countries that have piloted
these criteria will share their experiences and progress on the path to
elimination.
This third World Hepatitis Summit will open with a high-level
panel discussion featuring Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General,
World Health Organization (WHO); Helen Clark, former Prime Minister, New
Zealand; Professor Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, acting Health Minister, Egypt; Dr Tenu
Avafia, Deputy Executive Director, Unitaid; and Charles Gore, Executive
Director, Medicines Patent Pool.
“Women’s and children’s health
needs to be a top priority if we are to achieve hepatitis elimination by 2030.
Hepatitis B is a major public health threat requiring collective efforts to
advance universal vaccination of new-borns against Hepatitis B and prevent
mother-to-child transmission” said Right Honourable Helen Clark, Former Prime
Minister of New Zealand and Board Chair of PMNCH.
Danjuma Adda, World Hepatitis
Alliance President, said “we have come a long way, as a global
community, in the drive towards hepatitis elimination. I thank the WHO and all
partners for their support in this journey. We still have a long way to go to
reach many populations affected by viral hepatitis. The World Hepatitis Summit
promises to deliver on the power of the community, scientific and policy
partnerships in driving the elimination goals of viral hepatitis.”
The World Hepatitis Summit 2022 will be attended virtually by
delegates from more than 100 countries, including world leaders, ministers of
health, public health officials, medical professional, parliamentarians,
academics and representatives from organizations of people affected by viral
hepatitis.