The annual rate of hepatitis C cases tripled between 2009 and 2018, according to new data published April 10 in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
CDC researchers analyzed the annual number of confirmed acute hepatitis C cases reported to the CDC by age group for 2009-18 using data from the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System.
The annual rate of hepatitis C infections increased from 0.3 cases per 100,000 population in 2009 to 1.2 per 100,000 in 2018. This rate jumped about 300 percent for Americans in their 20s and about 400 percent for individuals in their 30s.
In 2018, millennials accounted for 36.5 percent of new hepatitis C cases, followed closely by baby boomers at 36.3 percent. Between 2015 and 2018, about 60.8 percent of individuals with hepatitis C knew they had the infection.
The CDC on April 10 released new hepatitis screening recommendations in conjunction with these findings. The agency now recommends all individuals 18 and older be tested at least once in their lives, and pregnant women be tested once during every pregnancy.