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<p>The 2020 impact targets set out in the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global
Health Sector Strategy on viral hepatitis 2016- 1 and Appendix 1 of the Hepatitis
C in England 2017 report focus on reducing the number of new cases of chronic viral
hepatitis C infection and mortality rates.</p><p> </p><p>A summary of progress towards
achieving the WHO elimination goal was published in 2017 in Public Health England’s
(PHE) report <em>Hepatitis C in the UK 2017 report: Working to eliminate hepatitis
C as a major public health threat</em>. Further progress for England only was recently
published by PHE in <em>Hepatitis C in England 2018 report: Working to eliminate heptatis
C as a major public health threat</em>. Copies of these reports are attached.</p><p>
</p><p>These progress reports have shown that the United Kingdom is on target to meet
the WHO interim goal of reducing hepatitis C mortality by 10% by 2020. Better access
to improved treatment and prioritising patients with highest unmet clinical need has
led to the first fall in deaths from severe hepatitis C related liver disease in a
decade.</p><p> </p><p>Assessing the impact Operational Delivery Networks directly
have on the incidence of infection is a challenge as this is difficult to measure.
Most proxy indicators of incidence suggest that that numbers of new hepatitis C cases
have remained relatively stable over recent years.</p><p>Successful delivery of treatments,
alongside the contributions of other public health services such as needle exchange
and opioid substitution services, will have an effect on incidence. Ongoing monitoring
of trends of identification of new cases, and of overall annual prevalence, will continue
to be important.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
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