Moldovan government approves national programme on combating B, C, D viral hepatitis for 2024-2028

Chisinau, 18 December /MOLDPRES/ - The authorities are set to reduce the acute infections with viral hepatitis by 20 per cent till 2028, to decrease the death rate caused by hepatic cirrhosis by 20 per cent, increase the rate of diagnosing and thus achieve a rate of treatment of 95 per cent. The goals are set in the national Programme on combating the viral hepatitis B, C and D for the 2024-2028 years, approved by the government today.    

At the cabinet meeting, Health Minister Ala Nemerenco said that the programme’s goal was to facilitate the citizens’ access to efficient, safe and accessible services of prevention, diagnosing, treatment and care. In this respect, the state will invest about 228 million lei from various sources.

„We will invest over 200 million lei in the next three years, in order to diminish the impact of these diseases triggered by hepatitis,’’ Prime Minister Dorin Recean said.   

Ala Nemerenco stressed that the hepatic diseases represented a burden on the public, caused by the high prevalence of the viral chronic hepatitis, which can evolve in quite severe forms, such as the cirrhosis and cancer. Patients with viral hepatitis are diagnosed, as usual, late, because of the asymptomatic evolution and this has an important medical, social and economic impact on the public health, the health minister noted. 

Statistics data shows that a cumulative number of about 50,000 people infected with viral hepatitis, over 5,300 – with viral cirrhosis and 450 with primary liver cancer are registered in Moldova. At the same time, about 2,700 deaths of hepatic cirrhosis alone are annually recorded.

‘’The viral hepatitis and its consequences have aa major social and economic impact; the premature deaths alone annually cause the loss of 23,000 years of life for the country’s economy, with a cost of more than half a billion of lei,’’ Ana Nemerenco also said.   

The health minister urged the citizens to go to family physician for prophylactic controls and testings, so that the diseases are detected in time and intervene with necessary treatments.