Hep B Targets Slipping
Australia 23 years behind on care, 24 on treatment
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ustralia still has a long way to go to achieve its National Hepatitis B Strategy targets aimed at eliminating the disease by 2030. The latest report from the Doherty Institute’s Viral Hepatitis Mapping Project reports that while overall infant immunisation reached the national target of 95% by 2020, coverage was low among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. Overall treatment uptake for chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is only half the 2020 target of 20% and for chronic hepatitis B care (i.e. treatment or monitoring), is less than half the targeted 50%. Nation-wide, uptake of treatment and care in both hepatitis B declined in 2020. This was not an unexpected result in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Regions which saw the greatest
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declines in treatment uptake were Central and Eastern Sydney, Hunter New England and Central Coast, Country SA, and Western Sydney. Regions where monitoring uptake reduced the most were Murrumbidgee, South Eastern Melbourne, Eastern Melbourne and North Western Melbourne.
Northern Territory At the launch of the 2020 Viral Hepatitis Mapping Report this week, the Northern Territory was identified as an example the rest of the country could study.
Uptake of hepatitis B treatment and care in the Northern Territory (NT) made huge strides between 2016 and 2020. Hepatitis B treatment uptake rose from less than half the national average in 2016 to just below
HEPATITIS SA COMMUNITY NEWS 92 • January 2022
the national average in 2020, and the Northern Territory’s hepatitis B care uptake at 24.8% is above the national average (22.6%). According to the report’s lead author, Dr Jennifer MacLachlan, as well as other participants at the launch, this achievement was the result of long-term planning and effort, and working with people on the ground to find solutions that are culturally friendly and accessible for communities. Encouragingly, ten of Australia’s 324 Statistical Areas 3s* have already reached the 2022 treatment target of 20% and three have reached the national target of 50% care uptake. (See charts on p5.) * Australian Bureau of Statistics data collection areas. See Data by region | Australian Bureau of Statistics (abs.gov.au)
