[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 6] [Senate] [Pages 8410-8411] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]NATIONAL HEPATITIS AWARENESS MONTH Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I rise today in recognition of National Hepatitis Awareness Month to raise awareness of this public health threat and encourage greater prevention, diagnosis and treatment efforts. Viral hepatitis is a highly infectious disease that directly attacks the liver and, if left untreated, can lead to life-threatening cirrhosis of the liver, liver failure and liver cancer. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention--CDC--estimate that roughly 5 to 6 million Americans are infected with viral hepatitis. Yet these chronic infections are silent killers, as those who are infected experience no obvious symptoms until advanced liver damage has occurred after years without treatment. Consequently, up to 50 percent of Americans infected with hepatitis B and 75 percent of Americans infected with hepatitis C are unaware of their disease. Without appropriate screening and management of the disease, viral hepatitis carriers can pass on the infection to others before suffering a premature death from liver cancer or liver disease. Similar to the human immunodeficiency virus--HIV--hepatitis B and C are spread through infected blood and needles. Despite awareness campaign efforts from advocacy groups and the CDC, there continues to be nearly 50,000 new infections each year in the United States, resulting in 15,000 deaths from chronic viral hepatitis-related diseases. While continued education and outreach is vital to discourage risky behaviors that expose individuals, it is only one part of preventing further spread of hepatitis. Perhaps most disturbing is the incidence of hepatitis B and C transmission occurring in healthcare settings from exposure to infected blood or the reuse of contaminated syringes. According to the CDC, unsafe injection practices are one of the leading causes of infections in healthcare settings. Although most healthcare workers are aware of the dangers and strictly follow safety guidelines when administering injections, outbreaks of hepatitis in recent [[Page 8411]] years have shown the continued need for awareness, education, and stringent safety practices in healthcare settings. Chronic liver disease is among the top ten killers of Americans and hepatitis C accounts for 40 to 60 percent of all cases. While there is a safe vaccine for several types of viral hepatitis, no vaccine exists for hepatitis C. It has been identified as one of the most significant preventable and treatable public health problems facing the United States. Clearly we must continue to increase awareness of the disease to prevent new infections, encourage screening and tests, and link those that are infected with the care they need. It is my hope that awareness efforts throughout the month of May will bring to light the significant and silent health threat of hepatitis, encourage appropriate screening and management of the disease, promote vigilant safety practices in healthcare settings and prevent further transmissions of the disease. ____________________