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WHD - White House Event - 1PM-4PM EST today
Live Streaming video
http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/whitehouseevent.htm
http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/whitehouseevent.htm
Hi again. I got totally bogged down with work today but hope to find this on the White House's website, if it no longer available on the link you sent. Thanks.
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WORLD HEPATITIS DAY, 2011
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
Across our Nation, millions of Americans are living with viral hepatitis. As many as three-fourths of Americans living with the disease are unaware of their status and are not receiving care and treatment for their condition. Raising awareness about hepatitis is crucial to effectively fight stigmas, stem the tide of new infections, and ensure treatment reaches those who need it. On World Hepatitis Day, we join with people across our country and around the globe in promoting strategies that will help save lives and prevent the spread of viral hepatitis.
Viral hepatitis is inflammation of the liver, and can cause a lifetime of health issues for people who contract it. Hepatitis B and C viruses are the cause of a growing number of new liver cancer cases and liver transplants. In the United States, hepatitis is a leading infectious cause of death, claiming the lives of thousands of Americans each year. While we have come far, work still needs to be done to prevent and treat this disease.
Viral hepatitis touches Americans of all backgrounds, but certain groups are at greater risk than others. Past recipients of donated blood, infants born to mothers infected with viral hepatitis, and persons with sexually transmitted diseases or behaviors such as injection-drug use have risks for viral hepatitis. Baby boomers and African Americans have higher rates than others of contracting hepatitis C. Half of all Americans living with hepatitis B today are of Asian American and Pacific Islander descent, and one-third of people living with HIV also have either hepatitis B or hepatitis C. Worldwide, one in twelve people is living with viral hepatitis.
We must make sure that this "silent epidemic" does not go unnoticed by health professionals or by communities across our country. Under the Affordable Care Act, services including hepatitis immunizations for adults and hepatitis screenings for pregnant women are fully covered by all new insurance plans. My Administration has also released a comprehensive Action Plan for the Prevention, Care and Treatment of Viral Hepatitis. The plan brings together expertise and tools across government to coordinate our fight against this deadly disease. Our goal is to reduce the number of new infections, increase status awareness among people with hepatitis, and eliminate the transmission of hepatitis B from mothers to their children.
The first step toward achieving these goals is raising public awareness of this life-threatening disease. We must work to reduce the stigma surrounding hepatitis, and to ensure that testing, information, counseling, and treatment are available to all who need it. The hard work and dedication of health-care professionals, researchers, and advocates will help bring us closer to this goal. On this day, we renew our support for those living with hepatitis, and for their families, friends, and communities who are working to create a brighter, healthier future.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim July 28, 2011, as World Hepatitis Day. I encourage citizens, Government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and communities across the Nation to join in activities that will increase awareness about hepatitis and what we can do to prevent it.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-seventh day of July, in the year of our Lord two thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.
BARACK OBAMA
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White House Commemorates World Hepatitis Day 2011
Ronald Valdiserri, M.D., M.P.H. is the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health, Infectious Diseases, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Today, I was honored to participate in a special White House event to commemorate the first official World Hepatitis Day. This event was one of many held across the United States and around the world for communities to join together and focus attention on the global health threat of viral hepatitis and promote actions to confront it.
Worldwide, one in twelve persons are estimated to be living with viral hepatitis and about one million people around the world die every year because of viral hepatitis. Many people infected with viral hepatitis are unaware of their status, and as a result, may unknowingly transmit the infection to others. Without knowing their status, these patients also face the possibility of developing otherwise preventable debilitating or fatal liver disease. Last year, in recognition of this “silent epidemic,” the World Health Assembly resolved that July 28 should be designated as World Hepatitis Day, providing an opportunity to increase awareness and understanding of viral hepatitis and recognize it as a major global health problem. The theme for this first official World Hepatitis Dayis “This is hepatitis... Know it. Confront it. Hepatitis affects everyone, everywhere.”
In the United States, an estimated 3.5-5.3 million persons are living with hepatitis B or hepatitis C virus. Viral hepatitis impacts Americans of all backgrounds but affects some U.S. populations more than others. Half of all hepatitis B infected persons in the U.S. are Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders; African-Americans are twice as likely to be infected with hepatitis C when compared with the general population. To actively address these disparities and to accelerate our efforts to fight viral hepatitis, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) developed an Action Plan for the Prevention, Care and Treatment of Viral Hepatitis. The plan outlines actions to increase viral hepatitis awareness and knowledge among health care providers and communities, and steps that will improve access to quality prevention, care, and treatment services for viral hepatitis. Improved coordination across HHS, along with the active engagement of other governmental and nongovernmental partners—including informed communities—will be crucial to our success.
Today’s World Hepatitis Day Event was hosted by the White House Office of National AIDS Policy with active support from the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health. Dr. Howard K. Koh, the Assistant Secretary for Health, emphasized that marking this day in such a special way provides an opportunity to reaffirm our collective commitment to focus more attention on this pressing public health issue. Dr. Koh was among the dignitaries who provided opening remarks at the event and read a World Hepatitis Day proclamation on behalf of President Obama. I was pleased to then hear from several members of Congress, including Representatives Bill Cassidy, Judy Chu, Michael Honda, Hank Johnson, and Barbara Lee, who have been leaders in raising hepatitis awareness. I moderated a panel that highlighted opportunities across the federal government to implement the HHS Action Plan for Viral Hepatitis. This discussion was followed by a session led by health care providers and patients living with viral hepatitis who shared their individual experiences with fighting viral hepatitis. Mr. Jeffrey Crowley, Director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy, provided a closing statement to the audience, which included government leaders, policy makers, community advocates, patients, and health professionals.
To learn more about World Hepatitis Day or about viral hepatitis visit the CDC’s website. Also, read the Presidential Proclamation–World Hepatitis Day.
Hector