Table 3.
Status of various policies and interventions to contain viral hepatitis in the Asia-Pacific region
| India | Pakistan | Bangladesh | China | Japan | South Korea | Indonesia | Taiwan | Singapore | Australia and New Zealand | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National plan | Yes | Yes | In drafting stage | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Reliable national epidemiological data | No | Yes (national) | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Reliable economic burden data | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Mandatory screening for HBV and HCV of donated blood | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mandatory nucleic-acid testing for screened blood | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (12 tertiary care centres for blood screening in surrounding areas) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Safe injections policy implementation | Yes (not well applied) | No | Yes (not well applied) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (institution level since 2015 after hepatitis C outbreak) | Yes |
| Needle exchange and opioid substitution programmes for intravenous drug users | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No (zero-tolerance policy on drugs) | Yes |
| Children with 3 doses of hepatitis B vaccine (%, year) | 63·0%, 2015–16 | 54·0% (by the age of 12–23 months), 2015 | 97·0%, 2016 | 99·0%, 2016 | 99·0%, 2016 | 99·0%, 2016 | 93·3%, 2016 | 97·9%, 2017 | 96·1%, 2016 | 100% (children born after May 1, 2000), 2016 |
| Birth dose HBV vaccine coverage (%) | 45·0%, 2015 | No (pentavalent vaccine given at 6, 10, and 14 weeks of age) | No | 90·0%, 2016 | 99·0%, 2016 | 99·0%, 2016 | 32·4%, 2016 | 98·7%, 2016 | 100% (assumed, no data available) | >95 ·0% (children born to mothers with hepatitis B receive vaccine and hyperimmune globulin within first 24 h after delivery and complete doses thereafter), 2016 |
| HBV vaccination for health-care workers | Yes | Yes (80% coverage) | Piloting stage | Partially | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Publicly funded HBV and HCV screening programmes | In a few states | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes for HBV; for HCV only (abnormal ALT >60 IU/mL) | Started in a few areas, will be expanded to the whole country | Yes for narrow age ranges (≥18 years vs ≤years) | Yes (National Childhood Immunisation Programme) | Yes |
| HBV screening for pregnant women | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | To be implemented | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| HBV medicines on national essential medicines list or subsidised by the Government | Yes | Yes | No | Partially | No | 70% subsidised by national insurance reimbursement policy | Provided via Government-owned insurance | Yes | Yes (entecavir and tenofovir) | Yes |
| HCV medicines on national essential medicines list or subsidised by the Government | Yes | Yes | Free direct-acting antiviral drugs in piloting stage | Partially | No | 70% subsidised by national insurance reimbursement policy | In application to Indonesian FDA | Yes | Yes (pegylated interferon and ribavirin) | Yes |
| Households with an improved drinking water source (%, year) | 89·9%, 2015–16 | 93·0%, 2012–13 | 98·0%, 2017 | 95·5%, 2015 | 97·0%, 2016 | >90·0% (water purification controlled by Waterworks Bureau except rural areas), 2015 | 45·5%, 2007 | 93·4%, 2015 | 100%, 2016 | 100%, 2016 |
| Households using improved sanitation facility (%, year) | 48·4%, 2015–16 | 59·5%, 2012–2013 (unshared facility); 9·6% (shared facility) | 75·0% (2017) | 76·5%, 2015 | 99·7%, 2016 | >90·0%, 2015 | .. | 100%, 2015 | 100%, 2016 | 100%, 2016 |
| National sanitation and cleanliness programme | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Status of HAV vaccination | Not in a national programme (currently not needed) | Not in a national programme | Not in a national programme | Yes | Not in a national programme | Yes | Not in a national programme | Yes (for all neonates, 70·9% born in 2012–16 received 2 doses) | Not in a national programme | Recommended for particular high-risk groups |
ALT=alanine aminotransferase.