A resolution expressing support for the designation of April 30, 2019, as "National Adult Hepatitis B Vaccination Awareness Day".

III 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. RES. 177 Expressing support for the designation of April 30, 2019, as ‘‘National Adult Hepatitis B Vaccination Awareness Day’’. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 30, 2019 Ms. HIRONO (for herself and Mr. KING) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions RESOLUTION Expressing support for the designation of April 30, 2019, as ‘‘National Adult Hepatitis B Vaccination Awareness Day’’. Whereas, as many as 2,200,000 individuals in the United States are chronically infected with hepatitis B, and as many as 2⁄3 of those individuals are unaware of the infec- tion; Whereas hepatitis B is a viral infection of the liver that is transmitted via infected blood and other bodily fluids, in- cluding through— (1) mother-to-child transmission; and (2) injection drug use; Whereas individuals with chronic diseases, such as diabetes, HIV, hepatitis C, and chronic liver disease, and individ- VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Apr 30, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR177.IS SR177 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •SRES 177 IS uals on hemodialysis, are at an increased risk for hepa- titis B co-infection; Whereas there is no cure for hepatitis B, and individuals with chronic hepatitis B require lifelong medical care; Whereas chronic hepatitis B is a common cause of liver can- cer; Whereas 1 in every 4 individuals with unmanaged chronic hepatitis B will develop liver cancer, cirrhosis, or liver failure, with liver cancer having a 5-year survival rate of only 18 percent in the United States; Whereas safe and highly effective vaccines to protect against hepatitis B are available; Whereas, in accordance with universal childhood hepatitis B vaccination recommendations in the United States, in- fants and children in the United States have routinely been vaccinated against hepatitis B since the 1990s; Whereas the hepatitis B vaccine, which is 95 percent effective and was the first anticancer vaccine to be developed, is projected to prevent 310,000,000 cases of hepatitis B worldwide from 1990 to 2020; Whereas only 25 percent of adults in the United States are vaccinated against hepatitis B; Whereas the number of reported acute hepatitis B cases in- creased by 20 percent nationwide in 2015; Whereas, as a result of the opioid epidemic, there have been significant regional increases in acute hepatitis B cases in the United States, including— (1) a reported 729-percent increase from 2015 to 2017 in Maine; VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Apr 30, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR177.IS SR177 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •SRES 177 IS (2) a reported 114-percent increase from 2009 to 2013 in Kentucky, West Virginia, and Tennessee; (3) a reported 78-percent increase in 2017 in south- eastern Massachusetts; and (4) a reported 62-percent increase from 2012 to 2016 in North Carolina; Whereas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hepatitis B is 50 to 100 times more infec- tious than HIV, and 5 to 10 times more infectious than hepatitis C; and Whereas there are significant opportunities, particularly with- in the setting of the opioid epidemic, to prevent new hep- atitis B infections, and thereby reduce the incidence of liver cancer and cirrhosis, through efforts to— (1) increase adult hepatitis B vaccination; and (2) maintain childhood hepatitis B vaccination: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate— 1 (1) supports the designation of April 30, 2019, 2 as ‘‘National Adult Hepatitis B Vaccination Aware- 3 ness Day’’; 4 (2) recognizes the importance of providing sup- 5 port and encouragement— 6 (A) for all individuals to be tested for hep- 7 atitis B; 8 (B) for individuals susceptible to infection 9 to be vaccinated against hepatitis B; and 10 (C) for individuals diagnosed with hepatitis 11 B to be linked to appropriate care; and 12 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Apr 30, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR177.IS SR177 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •SRES 177 IS (3) in order to reduce the number of new hepa- 1 titis B infections and hepatitis B-related deaths, en- 2 courages a commitment to— 3 (A) increasing adult hepatitis B vaccina- 4 tion rates; 5 (B) maintaining childhood hepatitis B vac- 6 cination rates; and 7 (C) promoting provider and community 8 awareness of adult hepatitis B vaccination. 9 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Apr 30, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR177.IS SR177 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS