One out of every 100 Americans is living with a deadly and communicable virus, yet most can't access the cure which will save their lives and halt the disease's lethal trajectory.
Hepatitis C now kills more Americans each year than HIV/AIDS and is 10 times more infectious. It has become a leading cause of liver failure and liver cancer -- the fastest-rising cause of all cancer-related deaths. For too long this blood-borne virus has silently ravaged communities across the country, often going unnoticed and untreated until it was too late. Until 2013, the only treatments for hepatitis C were painful and effective only half the time, leaving many patients with nowhere to turn, despite their diagnosis.
But now the tide is turning. Multiple treatments for hepatitis C currently offer cure rates of near 100 percent with minimal side effects. Now some of the biggest obstacles facing hepatitis C patients are health insurers.
Read more... Labels: access to drugs, Advocacy