WHO Warns Global Hepatitis Elimination Progress Too Slow

The global effort to eliminate hepatitis is moving too slowly despite the availability of effective prevention, diagnosis and treatment tools, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday.

The agency reported that viral hepatitis B and C, which account for about 95 percent of hepatitis-related deaths worldwide, caused an estimated 1.34 million deaths in 2024. More than 1.8 million new infections are recorded each year.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said progress remains “too slow and uneven,” noting that millions of people remain undiagnosed or untreated due to stigma, weak health systems and unequal access to care.

Hepatitis is a liver disease caused by viral infections and other factors that can lead to severe liver damage and cancer. Of the five main strains, hepatitis B and C are responsible for the vast majority of deaths.

According to the WHO Global Hepatitis Report 2026, around 287 million people were living with chronic hepatitis B or C infection in 2024. However, treatment coverage remains extremely low. Fewer than 5 percent of people with chronic hepatitis B are receiving treatment, while only about 20 percent of hepatitis C patients have been treated since 2015.

The situation is particularly severe in Africa, where hepatitis B infection rates are highest. In 2024, only 17 percent of newborns in the region received the recommended birth-dose vaccine.

Countries with the highest hepatitis-related death rates include China, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, South Africa and Vietnam.

Tereza Kasaeva said every missed diagnosis and untreated infection represents a preventable death.

Despite the challenges, the WHO stressed that effective tools already exist. The hepatitis B vaccine offers more than 95 percent protection, while antiviral treatments can control chronic infection. Hepatitis C can be cured in more than 95 percent of cases using short-course therapies lasting 8 to 12 weeks.

Several countries, including the United Kingdom, Egypt, Georgia and Rwanda, have shown that elimination is achievable with strong political commitment and sustained financing.

The WHO noted some progress since 2015, including a 32 percent decline in new hepatitis B infections and a 12 percent reduction in hepatitis C-related deaths, but warned that significantly faster action is needed to eliminate the disease as a public health threat.