More than 21 crore people have been screened for viral hepatitis and over six lakh patients have received free treatment under the National Viral Hepatitis Control Programme (NVHCP), the Union Health Ministry said on Tuesday.
Marking World Hepatitis Day and eight years of the programme, Union Minister of State for Health Anupriya Patel called for a “Hepatitis-Mukt Bharat” and urged the Centre, states and other stakeholders to intensify efforts to eliminate viral hepatitis by 2030 in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.
Patel said India is among the few countries providing free treatment for Hepatitis C and free management of Hepatitis B — a serious liver infection caused by a virus.
She said the cost of medicines has been reduced to less than a dollar and quality diagnostics are being made increasingly accessible to facilitate early diagnosis and timely treatment.
Highlighting the programme’s expansion, Patel said screening and treatment services are now available through the country’s network of over 1.85 lakh Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, taking hepatitis care closer to communities.
She said the Hepatitis B vaccine, introduced under the Universal Immunisation Programme in 2011, has achieved more than 92 per cent birth-dose coverage.
The minister, however, said only around 65 per cent of pregnant women are currently being screened for Hepatitis B and urged states and Union Territories to achieve 100 per cent screening to ensure timely administration of the Hepatitis B birth dose and Hepatitis B Immunoglobulin (HBIG) for newborns of infected mothers.
Calling Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C “silent killers”, Patel stressed the need to vaccinate healthcare workers, strengthen interventions among high-risk groups and create greater public awareness about free testing and treatment services available at Government health facilities.
Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava said the programme has established 1,153 treatment centres, surpassing the target of one treatment centre in every district, including more than 70 specialised centres providing advanced care.
She said over 7.64 crore pregnant women have been screened for Hepatitis B under the programme, while 2.24 lakh newborns born to infected mothers have received HBIG to prevent mother-to-child transmission.
Srivastava said the programme leverages convergence with the National AIDS Control Programme, Universal Immunisation Programme and maternal health initiatives, and called for effective use of the programme’s case-based management information system integrated with the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission to strengthen patient tracking, treatment and follow-up.
On the occasion, the minister released information, education and communication (IEC) materials on Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C, highlighting modes of transmission and services available under the programme for dissemination across States and Union Territories.