Whether you are a patient, a family member, a friend, a health care/service provider, or just someone who wants to know more about hepatitis or our organization, this site will provide you with information about the work we do and the issues facing hepatitis patients.

On March 20th, HEP launched the National Hepatitis in Corrections Network.  The inaugural meeting in Chicago brought together a diverse group of professionals who work on issues related to viral hepatitis in prisons and jails.  Among the 15 attendees were correctional healthcare providers, legal and policy advocates, representatives from state agencies, and health educators.  The goal of this new initiative is to create a space for collaboration and to streamline sharing of information and resources in order to increase our ability to advocate for viral hepatitis screening and care in our nation’s correctional institutions.  

The launch meeting produced some fascinating conversations; some highlights included:

• Identifying, as a group, numerous barriers to HCV treatment and screening for prisoners
• Discussing best practices for HCV screening and treatment in correctional institutions, as well as for offender health education, and legal/policy advocacy
• Generating tangible action steps we can take as a network, the first of which will be to build a clearinghouse for up-to-date information and resources to be made available online for use by agencies, advocates, incarcerated patients, and their families
• Hearing excellent presentations from experts in their respective fields, including:

          -  Dr. Lara Strick, Infectious Disease Physician for Washington Department of Corrections
          -  Jack Beck, Attorney and Policy Advocate with The Correctional Association of New York
          -  Gabe Eber, Attorney with the ACLU National Prison Project
          -  Dr. Julie Lifshay, Health and Special Projects Manager, Centerforce

The Network is a re-incarnation of the National Hepatitis Prison Coalition, a project of the late Phyllis Beck, a longtime advocate for incarcerated hepatitis C patients.  Based on our initial success, HEP believes the partnerships being formed via the network are a strong foundation for future collaboration that will create real change on issues related to hepatitis in corrections.  For more information, please visit www.hcvinprison.org.

In December, Boehringer Ingelheim launched a website, HepCRedefined.com, to help people with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Created in collaboration with HCV community advocates and health care providers, the portal offers a range of interactive resources that can be shared via social media channels, embedded on other websites or viewed on various smart devices.

Michael Ninburg, executive director of the Hepatitis Education Project, contributed to the website. "The entire HCV community is in need of simple tools and resources to talk about the disease in an informed, supportive way," Ninburg said. "There is information about HCV across the web, but HepCRedefined.com is designed to aggregate straightforward and accurate information in a single, virtual destination."

Some of the tools available on the portal include:

- a comprehensive and interactive checklist to help patients manage the care and treatment of their condition;

- a key facts page on HCV mortality;

- at-a-glance information cards designed to debunk myths surrounding HCV; and

- a community "C-pledge," where patients, health care providers and caregivers can take an oath to redefine the experience of living with HCV and the way it is perceived.

You can view the site here: www.HepCRedefined.com

The CDC has released a final draft of recommendations on that all Americans born from 1945 through 1965 (“baby boomers”) get a one-time test for the hepatitis C virus. In the U.S, hepatitis C is the leading cause of liver transplants and liver cancer, and the fastest rising cause of cancer-related deaths. Persons born from 1945 through 1965 account for over 75% of adults infected with hepatitis C in the United States, and are five times more likely to be infected than other adults. Yet most do not know that they have the virus because hepatitis C can damage the liver for many years without noticeable symptoms. More than 15,000 Americans—mostly baby boomers—die each year from hepatitis C-related illness, such as cirrhosis and liver cancer, and deaths have been increasing steadily for over a decade.  Read the final recommendations here.

For more information vist the CDC's Know More Hepatitis website where you can also take the Hepatitis Risk Assessment.

HEP has launched a hepatitis C medical case management program in Seattle, Washington.  This program extends support to hepatitis C patients by linking them to appropriate medical care and support, including treatment, education, and referrals to social services.

Our case managers work one-on-one with patients who have been diagnosed with hepatitis C, providing a helping hand from diagnoses to treatment.  Case managers are trained to help clients navigate through medical and community resources that directly impact their health.  With community connections and frequent follow-ups, patients are linked to medical recourses and empowered to access them.

To set up an appointment, call (206) 732-0311 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it