Office of Minority Health

What is Hepatitis?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. The liver is a vital organ that processes nutrients, filters the blood, and fights infections. When the liver is inflamed or damaged, its function can be affected. Heavy alcohol use, toxins, some medications, and certain medical conditions can cause hepatitis. However, hepatitis is often caused by a virus. In the United States, the most common types of viral hepatitis are hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C.

How Does Hepatitis Affect African American Populations?

Hepatitis B infection has dropped significantly since 1991 but remains an area of concern for the African American population.

• In 2020, non-Hispanic blacks were 1.4 times as likely to die from viral hepatitis, as compared to non-Hispanic whites.
• In 2020, non-Hispanic blacks were almost twice as likely to die from hepatitis C as compared to the white population.
• While having comparable case rates for hepatitis B in 2020, non-Hispanic blacks were 2.5 times more likely to die from hepatitis B than non-Hispanic whites.

Death Rates

Source: CDC 2022. Deaths: Final Data for 2019. National vital statistics reports; vol. 70, no. 8. Table 10. https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/106058

Source: CDC 2022. Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report – United States, 2020. Table 1.2 https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/statistics/2020surveillance/index.htm. Published September 2022. Accessed 12/8/2022.

Source: CDC 2022. Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report – United States, 2020. Table 2.2 https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/statistics/2020surveillance/index.htm

Published September 2022. Accessed 12/8/2022.

Chronic Hepatitis B

Source: CDC 2022. Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report – United States, 2020. Table 2.2 https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/statistics/2020surveillance/index.htm

Published September 2022. Accessed 12/8/2022.

Death Rate (Hepatitis B)

Source: CDC 2022. Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report – United States, 2020. Table 2.8 https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/statistics/2020surveillance/index.htm

Published September 2022. Accessed 12/8/2022.

Immunization of Adults (Hepatitis B)

Source: CDC 2022. Vaccination Coverage among Adults in the United States, National Health Interview Survey, 2018. Box 3, Table 2.
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/ss/ss7003a1.htm

https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/105322

Immunization of Adolescents (Hepatitis B)

Source: CDC 2022. Vaccination Coverage with Selected Vaccines and Doses Among Adolescents Aged 13–17 Years, National Immunization Survey–Teen, United States, 2021. Suppl Table 1.

https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-managers/coverage/teenvaxview/pubs-presentations/nis-teen-vac-coverage-estimates-2021-tables.html

Immunization of Children (Hepatitis B)

Source: CDC 2022. Vaccination Coverage Among Children Aged 19–35 Months - United States, 2017. Supplementary Table 1.
https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/59414

HEPATITIS C - ACUTE

Source: CDC 2022. Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report – United States, 2020. Table 3.2 https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/statistics/2020surveillance/index.htm. Published September 2022. Accessed 12/8/2022.

Chronic Hepatitis C

Source: CDC 2022. Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report – United States, 2020. Table 3.6 https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/statistics/2020surveillance/index.htm. Published September 2022. Accessed 12/8/2022.

Death Rate (Hepatitis C)

Source: CDC 2022. Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report – United States, 2020. Table 3.2 https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/statistics/2020surveillance/index.htm. Published September 2022. Accessed 12/8/2022.