At the Crossroads: The Rise of Hepatitis C and the Fight to Stop It

This eight part series looks at this unique moment in time for hepatitis C, a chronic infection that primarily infects baby boomers, with especially high rates among the incarcerated, veterans, and injection drug users. It's been called the "silent killer," because symptoms usually don't emerge until decades after a person has been infected. By then, the liver may be badly scarred. Hep C is the leading cause of cirrhosis and liver cancer, and can be deadly if untreated.

The good news is that we can cure hepatitis C. But for a hefty price tag: $84 - $94,000 dollars for a full course of treatment with drugs like Sovaldi and Harvoni. So who pays? For many of the millions of infected Americans, we'll all pay, through programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and prison health care systems.

Head inside a medium security prison clinic to meet inmates who are hoping for a second chance, and a cure. Hop out of the mobile needle exchange van in a poor New England town, where outreach workers are trying to keep injection drug users safe, and get them tested for hepatitis C. Hear the stories of people who have been living with chronic hepatitis C for decades, waiting for a cure. And meet the doctors, epidemiologists, and scientists who are battling the disease, and trying to understand it.

This series was produced for Rhode Island Public Radio as a project for The California Endowment Health Journalism Fellowships, a program of the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. Hide full description

This eight part series looks at this unique moment in time for hepatitis C, a chronic infection that primarily infects baby boomers, with especially high rates among the incarcerated, veterans, and injection drug users. It's been called the "silent killer," because symptoms usually don't emerge until decades after a person has been infected. By then, the liver may be badly scarred. Hep C is the leading cause of cirrhosis and liver cancer, and can be deadly if untreated. The good news is that we can cure hepatitis C. But for a hefty price tag: $84 - $94,000 dollars for a full course of treatment with drugs like Sovaldi and Harvoni. So who pays? For many of the millions of infected Americans, we'll all pay, through programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and prison health care systems.Head... Show full description