Guyana to offer free treatment for people suffering from Hepatitis C 

While announcing the decision, the Minister of Health, Dr Frank Anthony, considered the problems faced by the persons living with Hepatitis C and also suffered the cost of treatment. 

Guyana to offer free treatment for people suffering from Hepatitis C 
Guyana to offer free treatment for people suffering from Hepatitis C 

Guyana: Ministry of Health of Guyana announced the free treatment for the people who are suffering from Hepatitis C as the treatment would be fully funded by the government due to a partnership that has been forged with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).  

While announcing the decision, the Minister of Health, Dr Frank Anthony, considered the problems faced by the persons living with Hepatitis C and also suffered the cost of treatment. 

Shedding light upon the total cost of treatment, he stated that at one point in time, treating a person with Hep-C was close to US$80,000, which also witnessed a decline of about US $20,000, and now it stands at US$2,000. 

The Ministry also explained the criteria and said that the initiative is part of the strategy of the government, which is based on strengthening the medical facilities in the country and reducing the spread of Hepatitis C. The disease is long-term which could be the reason for the non-chronic diseases, including cancer. 

Anthony noted that “The medication that the country is using is about 90 something percent efficient and could treat the disease, so that’s why the government of Guyana decided to bring in these meds, the country will be starting treatment for those patients that we have on the database, so in a couple months’ time, we will start that process.”

Hepatitis C is widely known as a viral infection which could cause liver inflammation, and the virus usually spreads due to the contaminated blood and can also be the result of the sexual transmission. 

The virus could begin with an acute phase and have symptoms such as jaundice, fatigue, fever, muscle aches, or nausea. He further noted that in Guyana, the disease is treated with a very common method such as detection in which the blood screening is held at the Ministry of Health’s blood transfusion facilities.

As per the World Health Organization, more than 350 million people are living with this disease globally.