ASPPH Responds to CBO Report Eliminate Hepatitis C Treatment

July 31, 2024

ASPPH, along with other organizations that lead the Hepatitis C Elimination Coalition, responded to the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO) report, Budgetary Effects of Policies That Would Increase Hepatitis C Treatment.The letterurges the CBO to incorporate new research and data to support federal policies aimed at eliminating Hepatitis C (Hep. C). This aligns with the White House's Hepatitis C Elimination Plan, included in President Biden's Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 budget.

The urgency to eliminate Hep. C is underscored by the current statistics: over 2.4 million Americans live with the disease, and only one in three diagnosed adults has been cured. The coalition is promoting rapid diagnostic testing and treating at-risk populations with the newly approved Cepheid Xpert HCV test, while also updating cost data and highlighting the long-term economic and health benefits of Hep. C treatment. The CBO states that if double the number of Medicaid enrollees received Hep. C treatments it would avoid $7 billion in health care costs in the next ten years. The CBO will develop an official score of a pending bill once they are able to review proposed legislation later this summer.

ASPPH continues to work closely with the coalition and the CBO to provide comprehensive data and insights, as well as advocating for the new National Hepatitis C Elimination Program through our FY 2025 budget priorities.