World Hepatitis Day (July 28)

Viral hepatitis is a major global health threat with more than 290 million people living with chronic hepatitis B and up to 150 million people living with chronic hepatitis C. World Hepatitis Day is observed annually on July 28, the birthday of Dr. Baruch Blumberg (1925-2011). Dr. Blumberg discovered the hepatitis B virus in 1967 and two years later developed the first hepatitis B vaccine and for these achievements won the Nobel Prize.

World Hepatitis Day is one of eight official disease-specific world health days designated by the World Health Organization. The annual observance focuses attention on the huge impact of viral hepatitis infection globally – with as many as one in 12 people worldwide living with either chronic hepatitis B or C. The World Hepatitis Alliance, a non-governmental organization that represents hepatitis B and hepatitis C patient groups from around the world, also helps to support and coordinate this global observance.

Organizations around the world and across the United States use World Hepatitis Day to raise awareness of the problem and what needs to be done to strengthen efforts in prevention, screening and control of viral hepatitis.

Ways to Participate in World Hepatitis Day

Assess Your Risk and Take Action

Use these easy online tools to find out if you are at risk for hepatitis B or hepatitis C, then take action to locate a nearby provider of hepatitis B vaccination or hepatitis B or C testing. Share these tools with friends, family, colleagues, members, clients, constituents, and others.

Use the World Hepatitis Day Logo & Other Digital Tools

Incorporate the World Hepatitis Day logo into your website, blog posts, social media, email, and other communications. Visit the World Health Organization page and this World Hepatitis Alliance page to find an array of digital tools including buttons, badges, and banners in different shapes and sizes that are ready to download and use online.

Get Social

Join the conversation on social media. Use the hashtags #WorldHepatitisDay, #HepAware, and #hepatitis to share information on viral hepatitis, local, national, and global events, and World Hepatitis Day.

Follow @HHS_ViralHep on Twitter to learn about the Viral Hepatitis Action Plan, federal hepatitis actions and resources.

Follow @cdchep on Twitter to receive information from CDC about hepatitis resources, tools, publications, campaign updates, and events.

Support the 2018 World Hepatitis Alliance's Thunderclap by clicking here.

Use CDC’s Educational Campaign Materials

Know More Hepatitis is an educational campaign aiming to increase testing for Hepatitis C among people born during 1945-1965. Supporting fact sheets, posters, infographic, buttons & badges, live-read radio scripts, templates, and other images can all be found under campaign materials.

Know Hepatitis B is an educational campaign aiming to increase testing for Hepatitis B among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs).  This multilingual campaign has materials in English, Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese with select fact sheets also available in Burmese, Hmong, Khmer, and Lao.  Supporting videos, fact sheets, posters, infographics, customizable flyers, and other materials can all be found under campaign materials.

CDC has multiple viral hepatitis posters available for ordering at no cost. Some posters are available in Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese.

Watch and Share Videos

Learn more about viral hepatitis in these videos from federal partners.

Join in Supporting the National Viral Hepatitis Action Plan

Learn about our National Viral Hepatitis Action Plan to harness available tools and focus the U.S. response to viral hepatitis. The Action Plan features many opportunities for nonfederal stakeholders to take action in support of reaching its goals.

To help community efforts to build and strengthen viral hepatitis activities, we developed the Partner Planning Guide. The Guide can help organizations, coalitions, and others to assess local needs and strengths, existing activities, and plan new actions that align with the Action Plan.

Prior Observances of World Hepatitis Day

In recent years, in support of the Action Plan for the Prevention, Care and Treatment of Viral Hepatitis, the White House and/or the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have marked the observance of World Hepatitis Day.

• 2016 – HHS hosted a Hepatitis B Town Hall Meeting to foster better understanding of opportunities to collaboratively improve hepatitis B activities.
• 2015—HHS hosted the annual observance, focusing on progress and collaboration. The White House also issued a proclamation as well as a blog post.
• 2014—The White House Office of National AIDS Policy, Office of National Drug Control Policy, and the White House Initiative for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders co-hosted an observance that featured discussions about domestic and global responses to viral hepatitis.
• 2013—On July 26, 2013, the White House hosted a World Hepatitis Day observance. Read a blog post about the event. View the 2013 Presidential proclamation.
• 2012—The White House issued a World Hepatitis Day proclamation.
• 2011—The White House hosted an observance for the first World Hepatitis Day. Read a blog post about the event. Read the White House proclamation.