Photo: premier.vic.gov.au

To mark World Hepatitis Day, Parliamentary Secretary for Health Mary-Anne Thomas, today launched the Victorian Hepatitis B and C Strategies for 2016 to 2020.

The two landmark strategies are a roadmap for eliminating the burden of viral hepatitis in Victoria through prevention initiatives, more testing and treatment and reducing stigma and discrimination of the disease. It sets four ambitious targets including:

• Reducing to zero levels of stigma and discrimination experienced by people living with viral hepatitis.
• Reducing by 90 per cent the number of new hepatitis cases
• Diagnosing 90 per cent of all people living with chronic hepatitis B or C
• Providing care and treatment to 90 per cent of all people living with chronic hepatitis B or C

All Victorians with viral hepatitis are entitled to live longer, healthier lives, free from stigma and discrimination.

Our vision will see people with hepatitis, clinicians, researchers, community and peer workers come together to achieve these targets and end new transmissions and unnecessary deaths from hepatitis B and C.

In Victoria, there are an estimated 57,000 people living with hepatitis B, with only half of those aware they have the disease and just six per cent receiving treatment. About 65,000 Victorians are living with hepatitis C, but just one to three per cent of these are receiving treatment.

The Labor Government is working hard to ensure people with hepatitis C can access new life-changing medications, which are the first real hope of living free of the disease.

Meanwhile, regulatory changes by the Commonwealth Government mean treatment for hepatitis B is now more easily accessible from GPs, allowing people to better access care in their local community.

The Labor Government will continue to work with Hepatitis Victoria and other key services to deliver vital health promotion, community care and support and chronic disease management programs. We have also provided $2.2 million to address hepatitis C in prisons and $1.8 million to expand the needle and syringe program.