Reported cases of acute hepatitis C rose roughly 22 percent in the U.S. from 2015-16, according to a CDC report.
Although the CDC received reports of 2,967 hepatitis C cases in 2016, the agency said there were likely over 41,000 new hepatitis C infections that year. Numerous cases fail to be caught or reported, particularly because most people infected with viral hepatitis do not show symptoms.
As the opioid crisis worsens across the country, cases of hepatitis C have continued to rise. Additionally, new hepatitis A cases increased 44 percent between 2015 and 2016, with a number of cases due to two outbreaks linked to contaminated imported foods.
To raise the number of people with hepatitis C who are tested and connected with treatment that can cure it, the CDC recommends one-time testing for the infection among all adults born during 1945 to 1965 and among others at increased risk for the infection.