Bottom Line: The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) now recommends that adults ages 18 to 79 be screened for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. The USPSTF routinely makes recommendations about the effectiveness of preventive care services and this statement updates its previous guidance that adults born between 1945 and 1965 be screened. More deaths are associated with HCV than the top 60 other reportable infectious diseases combined, including HIV. The rise in cases over the last decade is due to more injection drug use and better monitoring.
(doi:10.1001/jama.2020.1123)
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Note: More information about the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, its process, and its recommendations can be found on the newsroom page of its website.