Health Minister: “New Hepatitis C medicine provides nearly 100% cure”
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Georgia’s Minister of Health, Labour and Social Affairs Davit Sergeenko says the treatment of Hepatitis C will continue in Georgia until the virus has been eliminated from the country and all sufferers are cured.
The Minister made the statement today with the United States (US) Ambassador to Georgia Ian Kelly at the Healthcare Teaching Centre where he informed local media about Stage I of the Hepatitis C elimination program which launched in April 2015.
Sergeenko announced this year a new-generation, Hepatitis C medicine was introduced in Georgia which had a "100 percent cure rate”.
Typically Harvoni cost €110,000 per person for one course of treatment.Photo by the Ministry of Health.
The first stage Hepatitis C elimination program was successful and as our partners were happy with the results, the second stage will be implemented immediately. Initially patients who suffer heavy forms of the illness will be a priority for us,” Sergeenko said.
The new medicine named Harvoni is produced by American pharmaceutical firm Gilead. The company gave the medicine to Georgia free of charge following a memorandum signed between the company and Georgia’s Health Ministry.
Typically Harvoni cost €110,000 per person for one course of treatment.
During the first stage of the Hepatitis C elimination program Georgia used Gilead’s medicine Sofosbuvir, also free of charge.
Harvoni is a new Hepatitis C medication combining Sofosbuvir and Ledipasvir.
US Ambassador Ian Kelly screened for Hepatitis C. Photo by the Ministry of Health.
Last year up to 7,000 people were involved Georgia’s Hepatitis C treatment program; 3,000 of them have already completed the treatment, 90 percent of the 3,000 saw complete recovery.
With the new medicine the number of patients involved in the program will reach 20,000, Minister Sergeenko said.
Also today Kelly and Sergeenko watched a film raising awareness Hepatitis C and were also screened for the virus by medical staff.
The Hepatitis C virus infects an estimated 130–150 million people globally and results in an estimated 700,000 deaths annually.
Georgia had one of the highest estimated virus prevalence rates in the world, affecting 6.7 percent of the population.
However through the public-private partnership between the US and Georgian governments, along with Gilead, Georgia is on its way to make history and completely eliminate Hepatitis C from the country.
In about five years from now, Georgia will be a Hepatitis C-free country thanks to a unique treatment program which was introduced today.
Georgia is preparing to sign a trilateral agreement that will allow a new medicine to be introduced to the market, which aimed to completely eradicate the infectious disease in Georgia.
The Georgian Government has declared 2015 as the year of fighting against Hepatitis C, says Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili.
Georgia’s President and the first lady have joined the country's new campaign to intensify the fight against Hepatitis C.
Georgia is stepping up its fight against the infectious disease hepatitis C with new medicine soon to enter the local market.
Twenty thousand people suffering from Hepatitis C in Georgia will receive free treatment this year and potentially enjoy 100 percent recovery thanks to an offer from American pharmaceutical firm Gilead to provide a new medicine to Georgia for free.
More than 25 people from Georgia’s two Russian-occupied regions have asked for and received Georgian passports so they can benefit from the free Hepatitis C treatment program Georgia offers its citizens.
A senior official from the World Health Organisation (WHO) is praising Georgia for the reforms the country has implemented in recent years.
Unique treatment program cures 92% of patients
Today the world is marking World Hepatitis Day and in Georgia the health sector is sharing positive results of its fight against the disease.
Georgia’s Minister of Labour, Health and Social Affairs, David Sergeenko says all people infected with Hepatitis C can receive free treatment.
US Ambassador to Georgia Ian Kelly said his country will continue supporting Georgia with its Hepatitis C elimination program.
A new modern centre for Hepatitis C management has opened in the town of Zugdidi in Georgia’s western Samegrelo region today.
Georgian and Ukrainian health bodies have agreed to jointly control the quality of medicines.
Georgia’s Health Ministry has announced that electronic prescriptions will become mandatory from 2018, and the ministry will not sign any deal with medical institutions lacking the system.
Around 45,000 people have gone through medical treatment for Hepatitis C in Georgia, 98 percent of which were cured, the head of Georgia’s National Center for Disease Control and Public Health (NCDC) Amiran Gamkrelidze said.