Italy launches free hepatitis screenings on World Hepatitis Day

The World Health Organization marks 28 July as World Hepatitis Day, using the 2026 slogan “Hepatitis: break down the barriers”. Across Italy, regional health authorities and local partners are holding free screening events for hepatitis C and promoting vaccination against hepatitis B. In Piemonte the regional health system and employers in Biella are offering rapid HCV tests at workplaces and community centres, aiming to diagnose infections early and achieve the WHO target of eliminating viral hepatitis as a public‑health threat by 2030. Ferrara hospitals and gastroenterology units are organising screenings and public information sessions, while the town of Amelia in Umbria runs a day‑long free testing campaign in the town square and theatre. Authorities cite WHO estimates of 240 million chronic hepatitis B and 47 million hepatitis C infections worldwide, causing about 1.3 million deaths each year, and Italian data of roughly 250 000 chronic HCV cases. The national free HCV screening programme, targeting people born 1969‑1989 and other high‑risk groups, complements local efforts and the routine newborn hepatitis B vaccination programme.