“Doctors have basically been taught and raised and are functioning in a system where addiction is always someone else’s job,” said Priya Mammen, an emergency physician and public health advocate from South Philadelphia. “The regulations treat these medications as qualitatively different from any other medication we prescribe. It gives off Read more
HepCAP’s in the news! Thank you to the South Philly Review for covering our first Town Hall in their latest issue. Community Health Leaders Come Together for Hep C Town Hall at South Philly Library Members from Hepatitis C Allies of Philadelphia (HepCAP), an organization dedicated to raising awareness about Read more
After Trump’s State of The Union commitment to ending new HIV infections in the United States by 2030, a press release from NASTAD emphasizes that “structural policies must align with our best science and the Administration must recognize the need to prioritize the health and safety of the communities that Read more
Add another hardship to the many already triggered by the opioid epidemic: More donated organs infected with the hepatitis C virus. “The ongoing U.S. opioid crisis has resulted in an increase in drug overdose deaths and acute hepatitis C virus infections, with young persons (who might be eligible organ donors) Read more
Inmates are being denied treatment, and it’s creating an epidemic. On May 15, 2017, after serving 37 years, David Maldonado was released from prison. He had been sentenced to life for a murder he committed when he was 16. But for Maldonado, getting out was about more than freedom; his Read more
Officials in Washington are seeking proposals from pharma companies for a “winner take all” hep C procurement deal It’s not just Louisiana working to tackle hepatitis C by purchasing drugs in a novel way. Officials in Washington are taking that state’s Netflix-style subscription model and upping the ante with a winner-take-all contract. Read more
Linkage to care and treatment among patients at an urban health network, Philadelphia, PA A new article in Hepatology details a study that examined the HCV care continuum at five diverse Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) in Philadelphia between 2012 and 2016 and concluded that: In this U.S. urban setting, Read more
A new Medical Assistance Bulletin from the The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, effective Dec. 17, issues updated handbook pages that include the requirements for prior authorization and the type of information needed to evaluate the medical necessity of prescriptions for Hepatitis C Agents submitted for prior authorization. This bulletin Read more
Yesterday, a legal settlement was filed for federal court approval for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania that would expand Medicaid coverage for incarcerated Pennsylvanians who have Hepatitis C. This would provide approximately 5,000 incarcerated people known to have hepatitis C with a cure through direct-acting antivirals. As the settlement awaits Read more
A recent piece in MedPage Today highlights HCV screening guidelines and how they affect rates of testing. It provides an overview of the evolution of HCV screening guidelines as well as current issues, particularly the discussion of the merits of universal screening vs risk-based screening. The debate is informed by Read more