[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 127, 113th Congress, 1st Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
PROCLAMATION 9001--JULY 25, 2013

Proclamation 9001 of July 25, 2013

World Hepatitis Day, 2013
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
Each year, we mark World Hepatitis Day to bring attention to a disease
that afflicts one in twelve people worldwide. Viral hepatitis is a major
cause of liver cancer and cirrhosis in the United States, leading to
approximately 18,000 American deaths every year. Outcomes can
significantly improve with treatment, but because viral hepatitis can be
present without symptoms for decades, most infected Americans do not
know they have it. Today, we raise awareness about preventing and
treating viral hepatitis, and we renew our commitment to combat this
disease in all its forms.
Public awareness is key to halting the spread of viral hepatitis. All
types of this disease pose serious health threats, and both hepatitis B
and C can become chronic infections that lead to liver cancer and liver
disease. Vaccines for hepatitis A and B are crucial to preventing new
cases, and they are recommended for all children, as well as adults at
an elevated risk of infection. There is no vaccine against hepatitis C,
but through early detection and treatment, it is possible to reduce the
risk of transmission, avert the worst complications, and in many cases
even cure the infection.
Anyone can contract hepatitis, but in the United States it
disproportionately affects the African American, Hispanic, and Asian
American and Pacific Islander communities, and people born between 1945
and 1965. Injection drug users of all ages are also at increased risk.
My Administration is working to raise awareness among communities
hardest hit by viral hepatitis, organizing campaigns to prevent new
infections, and promoting testing and treatment.
My Administration also continues to work with our partners across the
Federal Government, in States, communities, and the public and nonprofit
sectors to implement programs like the Healthy People 2020 initiative
and the Action Plan for the Prevention, Care, and Treatment of Viral
Hepatitis. This ambitious plan aims to reduce the number of new
hepatitis C cases by 25 percent, eliminate mother-to-child transmission
of hepatitis B, and significantly increase the proportion of people who
know of their hepatitis B and C infections. In addition, the Affordable
Care Act requires health insurance plans to cover, without co-pays,
hepatitis A and B vaccines as recommended for children and adults at
elevated risk for infection, as well as hepatitis B screenings for
pregnant women at their first prenatal visit. After June 2014, new
health plans must cover screening, without co-pays, for hepatitis C
virus infection in persons at high risk for infection. Plans must also
cover one-



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time screening for hepatitis C infection for adults born
between 1945 and 1965.
Viral hepatitis is a silent epidemic, and we can only defeat it if we
break that silence. Now is the time to learn the risk factors for
hepatitis, talk to family, friends, and neighbors who may be at risk,
and to speak with healthcare providers about strategies for staying
healthy. On World Hepatitis Day, let each of us lend our support to
those living with hepatitis and do our part to bring this epidemic to an
end.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of
America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim July 28, 2013, as
World Hepatitis Day. I encourage citizens, Government agencies,
nonprofit organizations, and communities across the Nation to join in
activities that will increase awareness about hepatitis and what we can
do to prevent it.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fifth day of
July, in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
eighth.
BARACK OBAMA