Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is the most common blood-borne infection in the US, and a leading cause of liver-related morbidity and mortality. Approximately 3.5 million individuals in the US were estimated to have been living with hepatitis C in 2010, and approximately half of them were unaware that they were infected. Among HCV infected individuals, those born between 1945 and 1965 (usually referred to as the baby boomer cohort) represent approximately 75% of current cases. Because of the substantial burden of disease among this age group, CDC expanded its existing hepatitis C risk-based testing recommendations to include a one-time HCV antibody test for all persons born between 1945 and 1965. The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) subsequently made the same recommendation in June 2013.
Objective: We estimated the rate of hepatitis C testing between 2011 and 2017 among persons with commercial health insurance coverage and compared rates by birth cohort.