PSA About Hep C Reaches Millions of Illinoisans

We teamed up with the Illinois State Medical Society (ISMS) to produce a Public Service Announcement (PSA) that encourages listeners to talk to their doctors about getting tested for Hepatitis C. May is Hepatitis Awareness Month, and May 19th is Hepatitis Testing Day in the United States.

Hepatitis C (also known as Hep C) is a serious and often deadly disease caused by a virus that attacks the liver. It is a “silent killer” that often lives undetected in the body for decades. Recent studies estimate that although nearly 4 million Americans are infected, only 25% of those know they have it.  Our PSA shares the good news that many cases of Hep C are treatable and even curable. Some patients can recover without treatment or chronic infection. For the rest, new treatment options are now available.

Hep C: Often an Invisible Disease

According to the ISMS, experts estimate 173,000 Illinoisans have Hep C. Alarmingly, as many as 75% are undiagnosed. Baby boomers are at a higher risk, which is why the CDC recommends that all Americans born between 1945 and 1965 get tested.

To date, the PSA has aired on over 75 stations, playing in over 20 cities across the state including Chicago, Rockford, and Peoria. By the completion of the project, this important public health message will have reached over 5 million listeners. Find out more about Hep C and listen to the PSA here: https://www.isms.org/Resources/For_Physicians/HepatitisC/.  Does your organization has an encouraging health message?  Talk to one of our media experts to see how we can spread the word to millions of Americans, locally, regionally or nationally with a well-crafted PSA.

Different Types of Hepatitis

Did You Know: Hep A, Hep B and Hep C are all different diseases. Each type of hepatitis is caused by a different virus and spread in different ways.Hep A does not cause a long-term infection, although it can make people very sick. Hep B and Hep C can become chronic, life-long infections and lead to serious health problems.