At this meeting, we focused on Hepatitis C elimination efforts in the City for both people with HCV and those living with HCV and HIV.  We had great data presentations by Victoria Osasah,  Rachel Grinstein, and Dr. Grace Haser, followed by an insightful discussion with the evening’s panelists – community member, Carolyn, Dr. Asa Clemenzi-Allen, and Dr. Scott Steiger. 

Many thanks to Dr. Annie Luetkemeyer and Jordan Akerley with End Hep C SF for planning this meeting with us.

Key Takeaways

• San Francisco is making progress on hepatitis C elimination, with high cure rates for HIV co-infected patients
• Challenges remain in testing and treating certain populations, especially people who use drugs, Black/African American communities, and those experiencing homelessness
• Point-of-care fingerstick RNA testing (Xpert) is a promising new tool that could dramatically improve hepatitis C diagnosis and treatment
• Rapid testing with immediate treatment are crucial to prevent losing patients in the care cascade.

Recommendations

• Develop prevalence estimates for hepatitis C in San Francisco
• Secure funding for point-of-care testing pilot programs in key settings like jails, opioid treatment programs, and low-barrier clinics
• Implement test-and-treat strategies that minimize barriers to treatment
• Continue targeted outreach to high-prevalence and high-risk communities
• Address reduction in  pharmacy services citywide as a growing  barrier to HCV treatment
• Strengthen collaboration between healthcare providers, navigation and community–based programs to improve hepatitis C testing and treatment

Link to the presentation slides is here.