A resolution expressing support for the designation of April 30, 2023, as "National Adult Hepatitis B Vaccination Awareness Day".

III 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. RES. 180 Expressing support for the designation of April 30, 2023, as ‘‘National Adult Hepatitis B Vaccination Awareness Day’’. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 27, 2023 Ms. HIRONO 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, 2023, as ‘‘National Adult Hepatitis B Vaccination Awareness Day’’. Whereas up to 2,400,000 individuals in the United States are chronically infected with hepatitis B, and up to 2⁄3 of in- dividuals with chronic hepatitis B are unaware of their infection; Whereas hepatitis B is a viral infection of the liver trans- mitted via infected blood and other bodily fluids, includ- ing through mother-to-child transmission and injection drug use; Whereas hepatitis B is associated with significant disparities among communities of color (including Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, and African immigrants), sexual and gender minority communities, and those affected by the opioid crisis; VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:37 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR180.IS SR180 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •SRES 180 IS Whereas individuals with chronic diseases, such as diabetes, HIV, hepatitis C, and chronic liver disease, and individ- uals on hemodialysis are at an increased risk for hepatitis B co-infection; Whereas there is no cure for hepatitis B, and individuals with chronic hepatitis B require lifelong medical care; Whereas chronic hepatitis B represents 1 of the most com- mon causes of liver cancer; Whereas 1 in every 4 individuals with unmanaged chronic hepatitis B will develop liver cancer, cirrhosis, or liver failure, with liver cancer having a 5-year survival rate of only 18 percent in the United States; Whereas safe and highly effective vaccines to protect against hepatitis B are available; Whereas, in accordance with universal childhood hepatitis B vaccination recommendations in the United States, in- fants and children have been routinely vaccinated against hepatitis B since the 1990s; Whereas all adults between 19 and 59 years of age, and adults 60 and older who have hepatitis B risk factors, are recommended to be vaccinated against hepatitis B; Whereas the hepatitis B vaccine, which is 95 percent effective and was the first anticancer vaccine to be developed, is projected to have prevented 310,000,000 cases of hepa- titis B worldwide from 1990 to 2020; Whereas only 30 percent of adults in the United States are vaccinated against hepatitis B; Whereas the number of reported acute hepatitis B cases in- creased by 11 percent nationwide from 2014 to 2018; VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:37 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR180.IS SR180 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •SRES 180 IS Whereas, as a result of the drug use epidemic, there have been significant regional increases in acute hepatitis B cases in the United States, including— (1) a reported 489 percent increase from 2015 to 2016 in Maine; (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 56 percent increase from 2014 to 2016 in North Carolina; Whereas 36 percent of new hepatitis B cases are among indi- viduals who inject drugs; 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 respect to the drug use epidemic, to prevent new hepatitis 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, 2023, 2 as ‘‘National Adult Hepatitis B Vaccination Aware- 3 ness Day’’; 4 (2) recognizes the importance of providing sup- 5 port and encouragement— 6 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:37 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR180.IS SR180 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •SRES 180 IS (A) for all adults to be tested for hepatitis 1 B at least once in their lifetime in accordance 2 with recommendations; 3 (B) for individuals susceptible to infection 4 to be vaccinated against hepatitis B; and 5 (C) for individuals diagnosed with hepatitis 6 B to be linked to appropriate care; and 7 (3) in order to reduce the number of new hepa- 8 titis B infections and hepatitis B-related deaths, en- 9 courages a commitment to— 10 (A) increasing adult hepatitis B vaccina- 11 tion rates; 12 (B) maintaining childhood hepatitis B vac- 13 cination rates; and 14 (C) promoting provider and community 15 awareness of adult hepatitis B vaccination. 16 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:37 Apr 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR180.IS SR180 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB