Reps want national policy on hepatitis

The House of Representatives yesterday urged the federal government to create a national policy on hepatitis aimed at aiding efforts to reduce the burden of the disease nationwide.

The House said coming up with a policy similar to that of HIV/AIDS for hepatitis would go a long way in curbing the spread of the disease in Nigeria.

Adopting a motion by Rep Aishatu Jibril Dukku (APC, Gombe), the House also urged the federal government to create public awareness on hepatitis and integrate the Hepatitis B vaccine into the National Immunization Programmes.

Dukku in her motion noted that hepatitis is a silent epidemic ravaging the health of Nigerians with an average prevalence infection rate of 13.7 percent, saying recent statistics indicate that about 23 million Nigerians are infected with the Hepatitis B Virus (HBV), which makes Nigeria to be one of the countries with the highest incidence of the disease.