Hepatitis fight shows progress, but world must speed up to hit 2030 goals, WHO says

Global efforts to fight viral hepatitis are making real gains in cutting infections and deaths, but the disease still poses a major worldwide health threat, according to a new World Health Organization (WHO) report released today at the World Hepatitis Summit.

Viral hepatitis B and C — the two types that cause 95% of hepatitis-related deaths globally — killed 1.34 million people in 2024, the latest figures show. Meanwhile, the virus keeps spreading, with more than 4,900 new infections each day, or 1.8 million every year.

The 2026 Global hepatitis report highlights important progress since 2015. The yearly number of new hepatitis B infections has fallen by 32%, and hepatitis C-related deaths have dropped by 12% worldwide. Hepatitis B rates among children under five have also declined to 0.6%, and 85 countries have already met or passed the 2030 target of 0.1%.

These successes come from steady, coordinated global and national action after WHO member states adopted hepatitis elimination goals at the World Health Assembly in 2016. But the report warns that current progress is too slow to reach all 2030 targets, stressing the urgent need to ramp up prevention, testing, and treatment around the world.

“Around the world, countries are showing that eliminating hepatitis is not a pipedream, it’s possible with sustained political commitment, backed by reliable domestic financing,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “At the same time, this report shows that progress is too slow and uneven. Many people remain undiagnosed and untreated due to stigma, weak health systems and inequitable access to care. While we have the tools to eliminate hepatitis as a public health threat, urgent scale-up of prevention, diagnosis and treatment is needed if the world is to meet the 2030 targets.”

Global burden and gaps in response

Updated WHO estimates show that 287 million people were living with chronic hepatitis B or C infection in 2024.

That year, 0.9 million people were newly infected with hepatitis B. The WHO African Region accounted for 68% of new hepatitis B infections, yet only 17% of newborns in that region received the hepatitis B birth-dose vaccine.

Another 0.9 million hepatitis C infections were recorded in 2024. People who inject drugs made up 44% of new infections, highlighting the urgent need for stronger harm reduction services and safe injection practices.

Of the 240 million people with chronic hepatitis B in 2024, fewer than 5% were getting treatment. Only 20% of people with hepatitis C have been treated since 2015, when a new 12-week treatment with a cure rate of about 95% became available.

Because of limited access to prevention and care, an estimated 1.1 million people died from hepatitis B and 240,000 from hepatitis C in 2024. Liver cirrhosis and liver cancer were the main causes of hepatitis-related deaths. A large share of hepatitis B deaths happened in the African and Western Pacific Regions.

Ten countries — Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, the Philippines, South Africa and Viet Nam — accounted for 69% of hepatitis B-related deaths worldwide in 2024. Hepatitis C deaths were more spread out. In 2024, ten countries accounted for 58% of the global total: China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Russian Federation, South Africa, the United States of America and Viet Nam.

Proven solutions

Despite these challenges, progress in countries such as Egypt, Georgia, Rwanda, and the United Kingdom shows that eliminating hepatitis as a public health problem is possible with steady commitment and investment.

Highly effective tools are already available:

– Hepatitis B vaccine protects more than 95% of vaccinated people against both acute and chronic infections.

– Long-term antiviral treatment for hepatitis B can help manage chronic infection and prevent severe liver disease.

– Hepatitis C short-course curative therapy lasting 8 to 12 weeks can cure more than 95% of infections.

“The data shows that progress is possible but also reveals where we are falling short. Every missed diagnosis and untreated infection due to chronic viral hepatitis represents a preventable death,” said Dr. Tereza Kasaeva, Director of WHO’s Department for HIV, TB, Hepatitis and Sexually Transmitted Infections. “Countries must move faster to integrate hepatitis services for people living with hepatitis B and C into primary care, and to reach the communities most affected.”

The report identifies priority actions to speed up hepatitis elimination as a public health threat. These include scaling up treatment for chronic hepatitis B infection, especially in the WHO African and Western Pacific regions, and expanding access to hepatitis C treatment in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region.

It also calls for stronger political commitment and financing, better coverage of hepatitis B birth-dose vaccination, and expanded antiviral drugs to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HBV infection, particularly in the WHO African Region. In addition, the report stresses the need to improve injection safety in both healthcare settings and community practices, including through stronger harm reduction services for people who inject drugs.