What to know
May is Hepatitis Awareness Month. This observance serves as a time to raise awareness about hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C while encouraging testing, vaccination, and timely treatment. Viral hepatitis is a major public health threat and worse, hundreds of thousands of people in the United States don't know they are infected. Work with us to remind everyone that hepatitis A and hepatitis B can be prevented, and hepatitis C can be cured.
Why it's important
Hepatitis A and hepatitis B are vaccine preventable and hepatitis C can be cured.
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A infection usually causes a mild, short-term illness. Vaccination is the best way to prevent infection.
Hepatitis B and hepatitis C
Most people with hepatitis B or hepatitis C do not look or feel sick. Getting tested is the only way to know if you have either virus and get treatment, which can prevent serious health problems including liver damage, liver cancer, and even death.
Although there is no cure for hepatitis B, treatments are available that can delay or reduce the risk of developing liver cancer.
There is currently no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C, but curative treatments are available. Most people with hepatitis C can be cured with just 8–12 weeks of well-tolerated oral-only treatment. Testing is the first step.
Our story
The purpose of Hepatitis Awareness Month is to educate health care practitioners and the public about the importance of vaccination against hepatitis A and hepatitis B and the importance of testing and treatment for hepatitis B and hepatitis C.
May 19 is National Hepatitis Testing Day. The goal of National Hepatitis Testing Day is to help raise awareness about viral hepatitis and to encourage more individuals to learn their status. All adults aged 18 years and older are recommended to be screened at least once in their lifetimes for hepatitis B and hepatitis C.
Each May we bring prominent viral hepatitis issues to the forefront by leveraging social media and sending direct communications to key stakeholders.
2023 Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report and 2025 Viral Hepatitis National Progress Report
In April 2025, CDC published the 2023 Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report and 2025 Viral Hepatitis National Progress Report. These reports contain hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C disease trends that inform the nation's viral hepatitis response and monitor progress towards national elimination goals.
For more information:
Get involved
- Share the ABCs of Viral Hepatitis to help others learn facts about the three most common types of viral hepatitis in the US.
- Register your testing services by visiting GetTested: CDC's National HIV, STD, and Hepatitis Testing site and filling out the online form.
Resources
Learn more about viral hepatitis.
