[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 120 (Tuesday, July 28, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6077-S6078]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

                                 ______
                                 

SENATE RESOLUTION 233--RECOGNIZING JULY 28, 2015, AS ``WORLD HEPATITIS 
                                 DAY''

  Ms. HIRONO (for herself, Mr. Schumer, and Mr. Schatz) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions:

                              S. Res. 233

       Whereas hepatitis B and hepatitis C, and the incidence of 
     liver disease caused by these viruses, have become urgent 
     problems of a global proportion;
       Whereas an estimated 350,000,000 people worldwide live with 
     chronic hepatitis B, and an estimated 780,000 people 
     worldwide die each year due to hepatitis B;
       Whereas an estimated 150,000,000 people worldwide are 
     chronically infected with hepatitis C, and an estimated 
     500,000 people worldwide die each year due to a liver-related 
     illness caused by hepatitis C;
       Whereas an estimated 1,000,000 people worldwide die each 
     year due to liver failure or primary liver cancer resulting 
     from a chronic infection of hepatitis;
       Whereas an estimated 5,300,000 people in the United States 
     are infected with either hepatitis B or hepatitis C, 
     including 1,400,000 people who are chronically infected with 
     hepatitis B and 2,700,000 people who are chronically infected 
     with hepatitis C;
       Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 
     (referred to in this preamble as ``CDC'') estimated that 
     there were 19,764 new hepatitis B infections and 29,718 new 
     hepatitis C infections, respectively, in the United States in 
     2013;
       Whereas the CDC has found significant increases in the 
     transmission of new hepatitis cases in the United States 
     since 2010, including a 151 percent increase between 2010 and

[[Page S6078]]

     2013 in new transmissions of hepatitis C in the United 
     States;
       Whereas chronic viral hepatitis claims thousands of lives 
     each year in the United States, with 19,368 deaths due to 
     hepatitis C in the United States in 2013;
       Whereas, in 2014, $4,500,000,000 in Medicare funds were 
     spent on hepatitis C treatments;
       Whereas a person who has become chronically infected with 
     hepatitis B or hepatitis C may not have symptoms for up to 40 
     years after the initial infection occurred;
       Whereas African Americans, Asian Americans, Pacific 
     Islanders, Latinos, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, gay and 
     bisexual men, and persons who inject drugs intravenously all 
     have higher rates of chronic viral hepatitis infections in 
     the United States than other groups of people;
       Whereas Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders bear the 
     greatest burden of hepatitis B related deaths in the United 
     States;
       Whereas hepatitis C is 10 times more infectious than human 
     immunodeficiency virus (referred to in this preamble as 
     ``HIV'');
       Whereas hepatitis B is 50 to 100 times more infectious than 
     HIV;
       Whereas an estimated 25 percent of people who live in the 
     United States and are infected with HIV are also infected 
     with hepatitis C;
       Whereas life expectancies for persons infected with HIV 
     have increased with antiretroviral treatment, and liver 
     disease, much of which is related to hepatitis B and 
     hepatitis C infections, has become the most common cause of 
     death among this population that is not related to acquired 
     immune deficiency syndrome;
       Whereas, despite the fact that chronic viral hepatitis is 
     the most common blood-borne infection in the United States, 
     65 percent of people living with hepatitis B and an estimated 
     75 percent of people living with hepatitis C are unaware of 
     their infection;
       Whereas hepatitis B is preventable through vaccination, and 
     both hepatitis B and hepatitis C are preventable with proper 
     public health interventions, including programs that offer 
     access to sterile injection equipment for people who inject 
     drugs intravenously;
       Whereas effective and safe treatment is available for 
     people living with hepatitis B and hepatitis C, including new 
     curative treatments for hepatitis C; and
       Whereas the goals of ``World Hepatitis Day'' on July 28, 
     2015, are to--
       (1) highlight the global nature of chronic viral hepatitis 
     epidemics;
       (2) recognize that hepatitis can be prevented and 
     eliminated in part through a comprehensive public education 
     and awareness campaign designed to identify those at risk 
     for, and living with, hepatitis;
       (3) inform patients about new treatments that are available 
     for hepatitis; and
       (4) help increase the length and quality of life for people 
     diagnosed with chronic hepatitis B and hepatitis C 
     infections: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes July 28, 2015, as ``World Hepatitis Day'';
       (2) supports broad access to hepatitis B and hepatitis C 
     treatments;
       (3) supports raising awareness of the risks and 
     consequences of undiagnosed chronic hepatitis B and hepatitis 
     C infections; and
       (4) calls for a robust governmental and public health 
     response to protect the health of the approximately 5,000,000 
     people in the United States and 400,000,000 people worldwide 
     who suffer from chronic viral hepatitis.

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