--- title: Hepatitis C: Opioid Epidemic Leads to More Cases description: A new CDC report shows cases of hepatitis C have spiked among Americans, especially young people. canonical: https://time.com/4775698/hepatitis-c-diagnosis/ author: Alexandra Sifferlin article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-05-11T17:00:11.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T04:52:47.766Z article:section: Health og:title: Hepatitis C Is Spiking Among Young People og:description: Experts blame the opioid epidemic. og:url: https://time.com/4775698/hepatitis-c-diagnosis/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2d7a357f3fe76b73/6988ccedcd1bbadd08705283/hep-c.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Hep C og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Hepatitis C Is Spiking Among Young People twitter:description: Experts blame the opioid epidemic. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2d7a357f3fe76b73/6988ccedcd1bbadd08705283/hep-c.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Hepatitis C Is Spiking Among Young People by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin May 11, 2017 5:00 PM UTC  Hepatitis C virus (HCV). Image produced using high-dynamic-range imaging (HDRI) from an image taken with transmission electron microscopy. Viral diameter around 22 nm. Hepatitis C virus (HCV). Image produced using high-dynamic-range imaging (HDRI) from an image taken with transmission electron microscopy. Viral diameter around 22 nm.Getty Images by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin May 11, 2017 5:00 PM UTC Cases of [hepatitis C](http://time.com/3811816/hepatitis-c-allergy-drug/) in the United States have nearly tripled within a five-year period, reaching a new 15-year high of around 34,000 new hepatitis C infections in 2015, federal health officials reported. Experts attribute the higher rates to more injection drug use during the ongoing [opioid epidemic](http://time.com/4677394/donald-trump-opioid-epidemic-and-rising-drug-costs/). The new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that cases of the disease rose substantially, from 850 new cases in 2010 to 2,436 cases in 2015\. However, because most people with hepatitis C do not know they have the disease and most new infections go undiagnosed, the CDC estimates there were actually 34,000 new infections in 2015. The greatest number of new infections are among young people from ages 20 to 29, a spike the CDC says is due to higher use of injection drugs in the [opioid epidemic](http://time.com/3618093/heroin-overdose-naloxone-price/). “We must reach the hardest-hit communities with a range of prevention and treatment services that can diagnose people with hepatitis C and link them to treatment,” said Dr. Jonathan Mermin, director of CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, in a statement. Most people living with hepatitis C are baby boomers, a population the CDC says is six times more likely to have an infection compared to other age groups. There are an estimated 3.5 million Americans living with hepatitis C, and the CDC reports that nearly 20,000 people died from the disease in 2015. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4775698/hepatitis-c-diagnosis/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4775698/hepatitis-c-diagnosis/"},"headline":"Hepatitis C Is Spiking Among Young People","datePublished":"2017-05-11T17:00:11.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T04:52:47.766Z","description":"A new CDC report shows cases of hepatitis C have spiked among Americans, especially young people.","url":"https://time.com/4775698/hepatitis-c-diagnosis/","keywords":["Public Health","CDC","Heroin","opioids","Opioid","opioid epidemic"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2d7a357f3fe76b73/6988ccedcd1bbadd08705283/hep-c.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alexandra Sifferlin","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2d7a357f3fe76b73/6988ccedcd1bbadd08705283/hep-c.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Hep C","caption":"Hepatitis C virus (HCV). 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