Guidance

Viral hepatitis: a guide to local and national data

A guide to understanding and accessing available local and national data for viral hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E.

• From: UK Health Security Agency
• Published: 27 April 2026

Introduction

Viral hepatitis is a major global health challenge requiring decisive action, the setting of ambitious targets, and vigilant surveillance. The UK Government has committed to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) goals to eliminate viral HBV and HCV as a public health threat by 2030.

High‑quality information is essential for measuring hepatitis‑related morbidity, identifying and targeting high‑risk groups, planning services, and monitoring and evaluating initiatives designed to improve health outcomes. This guide has been developed to support health professionals – including those in local government, service provision, and commissioning – by outlining the important information they need to understand what viral hepatitis data is available and how this data can be accessed.

Overview

Viral hepatitis is an infection that causes liver inflammation. If left untreated hepatitis can lead to severe liver complications and death. There are 5 main types of the human hepatitis virus, caused by distinct hepatotropic viruses labelled A, B, C, D and E, which differ by mode of transmission, geographical distribution, and severity of illness. Together these viruses pose a significant global public health threat, with an estimated 304 million people living with a hepatitis B or C infection and 1.3 million lives lost per year.

In May 2016, the UK signed up to the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Health Sector Strategy on viral hepatitis committing to eliminate viral hepatitis as a public health problem by 2030. This strategy outlines priority elimination targets, interventions and innovations aimed at preventing transmission and reducing incidence, increasing testing and enhancing retention to care to reduce mortality. Details on elimination targets and available indicators are provided in Appendix 2. High‑quality information is essential for monitoring progress towards these targets and for evaluating initiatives designed to address this public health burden. Furthermore, a wide range of resources is available to support the provision of information and intelligence on viral hepatitis across England. wide range of resources is available to support the provision of information and intelligence on viral hepatitis across England.

This guide has been developed to support health professionals, including those working in local government, service provision, and commissioning, by outlining what viral hepatitis resources are available and how they can be accessed.

These resources have been produced by collating data from a range of sources, including the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), NHS England, and other organisations. Detailed information on these data sources, along with considerations to bear in mind when using the data, is provided in the Appendix 1. Not all data collated by UKSHA can be made publicly available due to its sensitive nature. However, some data can be shared to support health professionals. Details on how to make enquiries, request data, and information on data governance are provided in Section 5.

While some resources are common across multiple types of viral hepatitis, others differ due to variations in the viruses, transmission routes, and the types of data relevant to each. Accordingly, this guide is structured by resource type, beginning with UKHSA‑published data and reports (Chapter 4), followed by online tools (Chapter 5), with each section containing subsections specific to the different viral hepatitis types. Each subsection provides an overview of the data and resources available for that virus type, along with links to the relevant webpages.

UKHSA published data and reports

UKHSA routinely publishes reports based on data from its surveillance schemes, with accompanying data tables made publicly available where possible. Links to viral hepatitis resources are provided in the sections below. Further detail on data sources and key considerations for their use is included in Appendix 1.

The GOV.UK website provides comprehensive information on most infectious diseases, including guidance, management, surveillance systems, data collection and epidemiology. A full list is available here: Infectious diseases: detailed information.

Hepatitis A

UKHSA guidance can be found on the Hepatitis A: guidance, data and analysis. 

Two routine national level reports containing data on viral hepatitis A (HAV) are produced:

Health Protection Report: current issue and latest surveillance report [note 1]

• Overview: Routine reports, and commentary, on data from health protection surveillance schemes.
• Data and topics: Laboratory confirmed reports
• Source [note 2]: SGSS
• Accompanying data tables : No
• Breakdowns: Age group, sex, UKHSA Region

Sentinel Surveillance of Blood Borne Virus (SSBBV) testing

• Overview: Data from laboratories testing for blood borne viruses including hepatitis and HIV as part of sentinel surveillance system.
• Data and topics: Testing and positivity
• Source [note 2]: SSBBV
• Accompanying data tables : No
• Breakdowns: Setting, age group, sex, ethnicity and geography

Note 1: This replaces the quarterly laboratory reports of hepatitis A infections in England and Wales

Note 2: Appendix 1 for details on surveillance systems on data source. 

Hepatitis B

UKHSA guidance can be found on the Hepatitis B: guidance, data and analysis.

A number of national and regional reports and datasets capturing data on viral hepatitis B (HBV) are produced and made publicly available, details of which are provided below:

Hepatitis B in England Annual Report

• Overview: Annual national report and supporting documents for England
• Data and topics: Focuses on elimination targets. Including: incidence/prevalence, vaccine and screening coverage, transmission, hepatitis B-related mortality and morbidity, testing and positivity, treatment
• Source [note 1]: SGSS, SSBBV and non-UKHSA data systems
• Breakdowns: Key demographics
• Accompanying data tables : Yes

Hepatitis B regional surveillance Annual reports

• Overview: Annual report for UKHSA regions
• Data and topics: Complements the national annual report with data and trends at UKHSA region level
• Source [note 1]: SGSS, SSBBV and non-UKHSA data systems
• Breakdowns: Key demographics
• Accompanying data tables : No

Acute hepatitis B (England): enhanced surveillance reports

• Overview: Quarterly reports for acute hepatitis B in England
• Data and topics: Clinical reports of acute hepatitis B cases and corresponding samples
• Source [note 1]: HPzone/CIMS Blood Borne Virus Unit (BBVU)
• Breakdowns: Age/sex; genotype; UKHSA region
• Accompanying data tables : No

Sentinel surveillance of blood borne virus testing in England Annual report

• Overview: Data from laboratories testing for hepatitis as part of sentinel surveillance system
• Data and topics: Testing and positivity
• Source [note 1]: SSBBV
• Breakdowns: No
• Accompanying data tables : Setting, age group, sex, ethnicity and geography

NHS population screening programmes: KPI quarterly reports

• Overview: KPI data reports for NHS population screening programmes
• Data and topics: Antenatal hepatitis B testing coverage
• Source [note 1]: NHS maternity services
• Breakdowns: Maternity service, region
• Accompanying data tables : Yes

UAM Survey of HIV and viral hepatitis among PWID: annual report

• Overview: Annual national report from the UAM Survey of infections and risk among PWID
• Data and topics: Prevalence of HBV infections, vaccination coverage, risk behaviours among PWID
• Source [note 1]: UAM survey
• Breakdowns: Gender, age, geographical region
• Accompanying data tables : Yes

Safe Supplies: Collaborating for Safety

• Overview: National epidemiological data on blood-borne infections among donors and recipients, modelling the associated risk of non-detection through transfusion and horizon scanning for new and emerging infection threats
• Data and topics: Ongoing collaboration key to support the UK blood services to monitor and maintain blood safety, risk of infection, and haemovigilance
• Source [note 1]: Blood donation testing
• Breakdowns: Hepatitis B surface antigen testing HBV DNA testing, and Hepatitis B core antibody testing
• Accompanying data tables : No

HBV UKHSA Data Dashboard

• Overview: To validate elimination of viral hepatitis, it is necessary to demonstrate the achievement of the WHO impact and programmatic targets. The data dashboard exists to do so
• Data and topics: WHO HBV elimination targets
• Source [note 1]: Data reported by local (NHS or private) or reference laboratories on testing for viral hepatitis is the primary source of surveillance data
• Breakdowns: No
• Accompanying data tables : Yes

Note 1: Appendix 1 for details on surveillance systems on data source.

Hepatitis C

UKHSA guidance can be found on the Hepatitis C: guidance, data and analysis.

A number of national and regional level reports and datasets capturing viral hepatitis C (HCV) are produced and made publicly available, details of which are provided below:

Hepatitis C in England annual report

• Overview: Annual national report and supporting documents for England
• Data and topics: Focuses on elimination targets. Including: incidence/prevalence, hepatitis C-related mortality and morbidity, testing and positivity, treatment and prevention
• Source [note 1]: SGSS, SSBBV and non-UKHSA data systems
• Breakdowns: Key demographics
• Accompanying data tables : Yes

Hepatitis C regional surveillance Annual reports (due to be published in 2026)

• Overview: Annual report for UKHSA regions
• Data and topics: Complements the national annual report with data and trends at UKHSA region level
• Source [note 1]: SGSS, SSBBV and non-UKHSA data systems
• Breakdowns: Key demographics
• Accompanying data tables : No

Sentinel surveillance of blood borne virus testing in England Annual report

• Overview: Data from laboratories testing for hepatitis as part of sentinel surveillance system
• Data and topics: Testing and positivity
• Source [note 1]: SSBBV
• Breakdowns: No
• Accompanying data tables : Setting, age group, sex, ethnicity and geography

Hepatitis C: estimating disease burden

• Overview: Local level estimates of hepatitis C disease burden
• Data and topics: Estimated prevalence; new laboratory reports and testing; disease stage; first occurrences of HCV-related ESLD/HCC; anti-viral treatment
• Source [note 1]: Operational Delivery Network (ODN); SGSS; UAM; HES
• Breakdowns: Yes
• Accompanying data tables : ODN, PWID

UAM Survey of HIV and viral hepatitis among PWID: annual report

• Overview: Annual national report from the UAM Survey of infections and risk among PWID
• Data and topics: Prevalence of HCV, chronic HCV, testing, awareness, treatment, risk behaviours among PWID
• Source [note 1]: UAM survey
• Breakdowns: Gender, age, geographical region
• Accompanying data tables : Yes

Safe Supplies: Collaborating for Safety

• Overview: National epidemiological data on blood-borne infections among donors and recipients, modelling the associated risk of non-detection through transfusion and horizon scanning for new and emerging infection threats
• Data and topics: Ongoing collaboration key to support the UK blood services to monitor and maintain blood safety, risk of infection, and haemovigilance
• Source [note 1]: Blood donation testing of HCV antibodies and HCV RNA testing
• Breakdowns: No
• Accompanying data tables : No

HCV UKHSA Data Dashboard

• Overview: To validate elimination of viral hepatitis, it is necessary to demonstrate the achievement of the WHO impact and programmatic targets. The data dashboard exists to do so
• Data and topics: WHO HCV Elimination Targets
• Source [note 1]: Data reported by local (NHS or private) or reference laboratories on testing for viral hepatitis is the primary source of surveillance data
• Breakdowns: No
• Accompanying data tables : Yes

Note 1: Appendix 1 for details on surveillance systems on data source.

Hepatitis D

UKHSA reports and supporting documents can be found on the Hepatitis D in England and the UK. 

One report capturing data on viral hepatitis D (HDV) is currently publicly available. Data on hepatitis D antibody testing is also provided in the SSBBV testing in England Annual report. Details of both of these reports are provided below:

Hepatitis D national surveillance report: 2010 to 2020 (data up to end of 2020)

• Overview: This report summarises HDV infection in England. It provides an overview of currently available surveillance data. It also provides recommendations for further work as part of a wider approach to achieving and sustaining elimination of hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030
• Data and topics: Age, ethnic group
• Source [note 1]: SGSS, SSBBV
• Breakdowns: Ethnic group, Service type, and age
• Accompanying data tables : No

Sentinel surveillance of blood borne virus testing in England annual report

• Overview: Data from laboratories testing for hepatitis as part of sentinel surveillance system
• Data and topics:Testing and positivity
• Source [note 1]: SSBBV
• Breakdowns: Ethnic group, service type, and age
• Accompanying data tables : Yes

Note 1: Appendix 1 for details on surveillance systems on data source.

Hepatitis E

UKHSA guidance can be found on the Hepatitis E: guidance, data and analysis. 

Data on hepatitis E antibody testing is provided in the SSBBV testing in England Annual report, details of which are provided below:

Sentinel surveillance of blood borne virus testing in England Annual report

• Overview: Data from laboratories testing for hepatitis as part of sentinel surveillance system
• Data and topics: Testing and positivity
• Source [note 1]: SSBBV
• Breakdowns: Ethnic group, Service type, and age
• Accompanying data tables : Yes

Note 1: Appendix 1 for details on surveillance systems on data source.

Online tools

Fingertips public health profiles

Public health profiles provide a comprehensive collection of health and wellbeing indicators across a wide range of themes. They are designed to support joint strategic needs Assessments and inform commissioning decisions. By offering consistent, comparable data, these profiles help local areas understand their population’s needs, improve health and wellbeing, and reduce health inequalities.

With these profiles you can:

• browse indicators at different geographical levels
• benchmark against the regional or England average
• export data to use locally

For full details of all the indicators available refer to the [Public Health Profiles website]((https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/public-health-outcomes-framework).

Indicators relating to hepatitis can be found under the health protection profiles and health improvement under the public health outcomes framework.

Hepatitis indicators provided in fingertips

Hepatitis indicators provided in fingertips include:

• acute hepatitis B incidence rate per 100,000
• population vaccination coverage – Hepatitis B (1 year old)
• population vaccination coverage – Hepatitis B (2 years old)
• infectious Diseases in Pregnancy Screening: Hepatitis B Coverage
• persons entering drug misuse treatment – percentage of eligible persons completing a course of hepatitis B vaccination
• under 75 mortality rate from Hepatitis B related end stage liver disease/hepatocellular carcinoma (1 year range)
• under 75 mortality rate from Hepatitis B related end stage liver disease/hepatocellular carcinoma (3-year range)
• hepatitis C detection rate per 100,000
• persons in drug misuse treatment who inject drugs – Percentage of eligible persons who have received a Hepatitis C test
• under 75 mortality rate from Hepatitis C related end stage liver disease/hepatocellular carcinoma (1 year range)
• under 75 mortality rate from Hepatitis C related end stage liver disease/hepatocellular carcinoma (3 year range)

Hepatitis C dashboard

The purpose of the dashboard is to support HCV elimination as a public health problem by exploring variations in HCV service provision and epidemiology in local populations. The audience for this data is intended to be HCV service providers, Operational Delivery Network (ODNs) and commissioners who require a need for local HCV data to inform decision-making.

A key feature of the dashboard are the indicators, presented as the HCV care continuum/service care pathway. Service care pathways are an effective public health tool designed to operationalise data from multiple steps of disease control into a logical process to inform local service improvements.

Access to the dashboard is granted to individuals who have a justifiable need for the data for decision-making, therefore data on the dashboard should be treated as OFFICIAL SENSITIVE and not shared in the public domain.

Complete the form to request access to the dashboard.

For those who already have access, to the dashboard, see Local UKHSA HCV data dashboard (restricted access).

SPOTLIGHT: Improving Inclusion Health Outcomes

Spotlight is a data dissemination platform that collates and presents key statistics related to the public health outcomes of Inclusion health groups across the following themes: access to and use of health care; preventative care; health outcomes; and wider determinants of health.

The aim of Spotlight is to improve accessibility and visibility of data and evidence related to inclusion health populations. Data has been selected for inclusion based on validity, reliability, and relevance of the original source.

Further information and a link to the website is available here SPOTLIGHT: Improving Inclusion Health Outcomes.

Hepatitis indicators provided in SPOTLIGHT

• SP32: Percentage of eligible adults starting drug treatment who complete a course of hepatitis B vaccination, 2012/2013 to 2016/2017
• SP121: Percentage of people who inject drugs participating in the Unlinked Anonymous Monitoring (UAM) Survey, who test positive for hepatitis B on a core antibody test, 2012-2021
• SP122: Percentage of people who inject drugs participating in the Unlinked Anonymous Monitoring (UAM) Survey, who test positive for ever having hepatitis C, or who are living with hepatitis C, 2012-2021
• SP135: Percentage of eligible adults starting drug treatment who have received a hepatitis C test, 2012/2013 to 2017/2018
• SP156: Percentage of new receptions to secure and detained settings who are tested for hepatitis C, 2010/11 to 2020/21
• SP158 Percentage of positive test results for hepatitis C where homelessness or rough sleeping was indicated, 2014 to 2020

Data requests and queries

General data requests and queries

New data requests or queries are triaged by UKHSA BBV Regional Facilitators. Email the Hepatitis team Hepatitis@ukhsa.gov.uk for contact details.

They will discuss your data query, establish how you plan to use the data and provide what you need, following standard data sharing and information governance. Where relevant regional data scientists and epidemiologists will support queries.

Specific data requests and queries

Queries regarding specific surveillance systems, datasets, or teams can be sent to the relevant team, see table below:

Topic	E-mail address
Laboratory surveillance	phe.hepcdiagnoses@nhs.net or Hepatitis@ukhsa.gov.uk
Sentinel surveillance	Hepatitis@ukhsa.gov.uk
Health and Justice Indicators of Performance	Steve.Willner@ukhsa.gov.uk
Unlinked Anonymous Monitoring Survey of People Who Inject Drugs (UAM Survey)	UAMPWIDSurvey@ukhsa.gov.uk
Liver transplants	hepatitis@ukhsa.gov.uk FAO annastella
Hospital episode statistics	hepatitis@ukhsa.gov.uk FAO annastella
Mortality	hepatitis@ukhsa.gov.uk FAO annastella
Immunisation – selective and universal	cover@phe.gov.uk
Immunisation – sexual health services	gumcad@phe.gov.uk
NHS Blood and Transplant - blood donation screening for hepatitis (HAV, HBV, HCV, HEV)	epidemiology@nhsbt.nhs.uk
Integrated screening outcomes surveillance service (Infectious Diseases in Pregnancy Screening Programme)	isoss@ucl.ac.uk
National Hepatitis C reports	hepatitis@ukhsa.gov.uk
National hepatitis B reports	hepatitis@ukhsa.gov.uk
Hepatitis C Viral Treatment	hepatitis@ukhsa.gov.uk

Regional field services

Find your local Field Service team below:

Area	E-mail address
East of England	efeu@phe.gov.uk
East Midlands	FSMidlands@ukhsa.gov.uk
London	FES.SEaL@phe.gov.uk
North East	FES.northeast@phe.gov.uk
North West	FES.NorthWest@phe.gov.uk
South East	FES.SEaL@phe.gov.uk
South West	FES.southwest@phe.gov.uk
West Midlands	FSMidlands@ukhsa.gov.uk
Yorkshire and the Humber	yhfes@phe.gov.uk

Appendix 1: Surveillance Systems for Viral Hepatitis

Testing and diagnosis

Second Generation Surveillance System

Hepatitis A, B, C and E, along with other organisms that cause infectious diseases, are notifiable under the Health Protection (Notification) Regulations 2010 and must be reported to UKHSA by all primary diagnostic laboratories in England. Laboratory isolates and notifications are submitted to the UKHSA Second Generation Surveillance System (SGSS), which covers a wider range of causative agents than the Notification Regulations. Full reporting requirements are detailed in Notifiable organisms and how to report them. 

Data is deduplicated where possible, but the variable quality of patient-identifiable information, particularly from sexual health and drug and alcohol services, limits deduplication.  

Data is assigned to local authority and UKHSA region by patient postcode where present, if patient postcode is unknown, data is assigned to local authority and UKHSA region of registered general practice; where both patient postcode and registered general practice are unknown data is assigned to local authority and UKHSA region of laboratory. 

Recent years’ data may change due to late reporting and subsequent deduplication. Results for children under one year are excluded to avoid detecting maternal antibodies.

Sentinel Surveillance of Bloodborne Viruses

Sentinel surveillance of Blood Borne Virus (SSBBV) testing began in 2002 to enhance routine hepatitis C surveillance and was extended to other organisms. As of March 2026, 35 laboratories in England submit data, covering around 45% of all testing in the GP‑registered population. Because the 2 laboratories processing dried blood spot (DBS) tests for major drug services also participate, the system is likely to capture most BBV testing from drug services. 

SSBBV collects data only from primary diagnostic testing and excludes samples taken outside routine testing – such as look-back studies, reference testing, and samples from children under one year. All primary diagnostic tests are reported regardless of result, enabling analysis of testing volumes, testing rates, and positivity. The system also captures information on risk exposures and clinical symptoms. Further details are available in Sentinel Surveillance of Blood Borne Virus (SSBBV) testing.  

Data is deduplicated where possible using date of birth, Soundex, NHS number and first initial, though variable quality of patient identifiers – especially from sexual health and drug and alcohol services – limits this. Data is assigned to UKHSA region by the location of the requesting testing site. 

Trend analyses use laboratories with complete and consistent reporting over a five‑year period, meaning the number of laboratories included may vary annually. Proportion positive is calculated using the number of individuals tested. 

UKHSA’s SSBBV privacy notice explains what personal data is collected, how they are used and who they may be shared with: SSBBV privacy notice.

HPZone or Case and Incident Management System

HPZone was a case and outbreak management system used by the health protection teams (HPTs) in UKHSA until mid-2024, when it was replaced by a new Case and Incident Management System (CIMS). Details related to cases of hepatitis A, B, C and E are stored on this system in addition to details of other infections reported to the HPTs.

As a result of the transition from HPZone to CIMS in mid-2024, there is a known issue that has likely impacted the identification of people with acute hepatitis B and likely resulted in the underreporting of cases.

Health and justice indicators of performance

The NHS England Health and Justice team is responsible for commissioning healthcare for children, young people and adults across secure and detained settings, which includes prisons, secure facilities for children and young people and immigration removal centres.

UKHSA in partnership with NHS England and HM Prison and Probation Service have overseen the roll out of BBV testing in adult prisons on an ‘opt-out’ basis. Performance in relation to the BBV testing programme is measured at the prison level through the collection of data through the Health and Justice Indicators of Performance. These metrics include specific reports on the number of BBV tests offered within 72 hours of reception, the number of tests undertaken, the number of people newly diagnosed (for hepatitis C this includes those positive for both antibodies and virus as determined by polymerase chain reaction, the number of patients referred for specialist treatment following diagnosis and the number who received treatment.

More information can be found at NHS Health and Justice and Public health in prisons and secure settings.

Unlinked Anonymous Monitoring Survey of human immunodeficiency virus and viral hepatitis among people who inject drugs

The Unlinked Anonymous Monitoring (UAM) Survey is a voluntary cross-sectional, bio-behavioural survey that monitors BBV and associated risk and protective behaviours among people who have ever injected psychoactive drugs in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. People who have ever injected psychoactive drugs (including people who are currently injecting drugs or have done so in the past) are recruited to the survey through specialist agencies. These agencies provide a range of services to people who inject drugs (PWID), including medical treatment, needle and syringe programmes and outreach work. The survey has been running since 1990 in England and Wales and was extended to Northern Ireland in 2002.

People who agree to participate in the UAM Survey provide a dried blood spot sample, which is tested anonymously for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), HBV and HCV. Limited demographic and behavioural information are collected through a brief self-completed questionnaire. The questionnaire includes questions on the uptake of diagnostic testing for HIV and HCV, HBV vaccination and the sharing of injecting equipment. No personal identifiers are collected; the questionnaire and specimen testing are anonymous.

Sampling to the UAM Survey in 2020 and 2021 was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in a smaller sample size, as well as changes to the geographic and demographic profile of those taking part. The risk behaviours of those sampled in 2020 were also significantly different to that seen in 2019 and 2021, likely a result of drug and alcohol services limiting in-person appointments to clients most at risk. These changes should be taken into account when interpreting data for 2020 and 2021.

Published regional-level data and more information can be found at People who inject drugs: HIV and viral hepatitis monitoring.

NHS Blood and Transplant service

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) service collects blood donations from donors in England. All donations are screened for blood borne infections including HBV and HCV. Blood donors are volunteers, aged 17 years and over, and a group at lower risk of BBV infections compared to the general population because some people with a history of associated risk factors are asked not to give blood. Using this data the NHSBT and UKHSA Epidemiology Unit collaborate to produce an annual epidemiological review of UK blood donors with markers of infection. This data is helpful in improving our understanding of the epidemiology of blood borne infections, and there is potential for following up infected donors. 

Further information and annual reports are available at: Epidemiology - Hospitals and Science.

Infectious diseases in pregnancy screening programme

NHS England’s Infectious Diseases in Pregnancy Screening Programme commissions the Integrated Screening Outcomes Surveillance Service (ISOSS) to monitor pregnancies where the mother is known to have HBV or has a positive pregnancy‑screening test. ISOSS also conducts surveillance for HIV and syphilis in pregnancy, as well as ongoing monitoring of congenital rubella syndrome.

Further data and annual reports can be found at NHS population screening programmes: antenatal data standards reports and NHS fetal anomaly screening programme (FASP).

Treatments and outcomes

Hospital Episode Statistics

Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) is a database containing details of all admissions, ED attendances and outpatient appointments at NHS hospitals in England.  

This data is used to calculate the number of individuals per year that have a hospital admission associated with HBV or HCV-related end stage liver disease (ESLD) or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). It is also used to calculate incidence of HBV-related ESLD, HCC and HCV-related ESLD/HCC. HCC is defined by ICD-10 code for HCC (C22.0).  ESLD is defined by ICD-10 codes for ascites (R18), bleeding oesophageal varices (I85.0 and I98.3), hepato-renal syndrome (K76.7), hepatic encephalopathy (K72.9) or hepatic failure (K72.0, K72.1 and K70.4). 

Patients who have had more than one hospital episode with a diagnosis in any one year and who have moved residence within that year have been grouped into the UKHSA region of their latest hospital episode in that year.

Further information can be found at HES: NHS England Digital.

Treatment

Hepatitis C treatment initiation data is used to monitor access to hepatitis C treatment. Records from individuals with a diagnosis of chronic hepatitis C reported through SSBBV are linked to the NHSE Hepatitis C Patient Registry and Treatment Outcome System and NHSE’s Blueteq System.

The NHSE Hepatitis C Patient Registry and Treatment Outcome System was commissioned by NHSE in 2017 from the Arden and Greater East Midlands Commissioning Support Unit to capture more detailed information for patients. This registry acts as a comprehensive clinical tool used by over 120 Trusts to monitor patients throughout their care journey. The Hepatitis C treatment monitoring in England report summarises the data held within the registry and treatment outcome system following the first year of its development.

Blueteq is a web-based, secure software system widely used by NHS England and NHS Wales to manage, approve, and track the use of High-Cost Drugs and specialized treatments.

The National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS) is a secure, national database in England used to collect, analyse, and report on data from drug and alcohol treatment services. It monitors treatment effectiveness, improves service user outcomes, and informs policy decisions. The NDTMS dashboard provides access to National Statistics about substance misuse treatment, including HCV. It is designed and maintained by the National Drug Evidence Centre at the University of Manchester, on behalf of Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID).

Further information of methodology and resulting data and statistics are published in Hepatitis C in England and the UK.

Treatment monitoring data for hepatitis B continues to be an area of development with significant collaborative work underway between UKHSA, NHSE, NHS trusts and academic partners. IQVIA (data science and clinical research company) collects data on antiviral prescriptions dispensed in secondary care pharmacies in England from which numbers receiving treatment for hepatitis B can be estimated. It is important to note that these estimates are based on aggregated data and do not account for people receiving combination therapies, such as people living with both HIV and hepatitis B or people receiving treatment for hepatitis B alongside receiving HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis. In addition, data from the HIC viral hepatitis and liver disease theme have been used to estimate treatment coverage against a range of treatment guidelines.  

Further information of methodology and resulting data and statistics is published in Hepatitis B in England 2025.

Office for National Statistics Mortality data

Data from the Deaths (Office for National Statistics) is used to calculate the number of deaths from ESLD or HCC with either hepatitis B or hepatitis C mentioned on the death certificate.     

Further information of methodology and resulting data and statistics are published in the respective reports: Hepatitis B in England 2025 and Hepatitis C in England and the UK.

Immunisation

The objective of the hepatitis B immunisation programme in England is to provide a complete course of vaccine for:

1. all Infants, as part of the routine childhood immunisation programme (schedule: 8,12,16 weeks of age), to protect against future exposure risks 
2. individuals at high risk of exposure to the virus or complications of the disease   
3. individuals who have already been exposed to the virus (post-exposure immunisation), including infants born to women living with HBV infection (a targeted birth dose and accelerated schedule)

Cover of Vaccination Evaluated Rapidly

The Cover of Vaccination Evaluated Rapidly (COVER) programme is a quarterly data collection that started in 1987 with the aim of providing more timely data than were available through annual collections. COVER data is extracted from Child Health Information Systems at the local authority level for children aged 1, 2 and 5 years of age.

Babies born to mothers with HBV have been offered the hepatitis B vaccine from birth since the late 1980s. During autumn 2017 hepatitis B vaccine became part of the routine childhood immunisation schedule for all babies in a 6-in-1 vaccine. As part of changes to the wider routine childhood immunisation schedule, from the 1st of July 2025 a 4th dose of the HBV containing hexavalent vaccine was added into the UK schedule.  

Data from the universal programme for all infants and the selective programme for infants born to women living with HBV infection is published through quarterly and annually reports. Further information of methodology and resulting epidemiological data and statistics is published in the Hepatitis B in England 2025 report.

UAM and Genitourinary Medicine Clinic Activity Dataset

Vaccination data is available for both PWID and men who have sex with men.

Self-reported data regarding vaccine uptake among PWID is available through the UAM Survey (see section above).

The Genitourinary Medicine Clinic Activity Dataset (GUMCAD) is the national surveillance system for sexually transmitted infections. This system collects data on diagnoses, testing and other sexual health activities in sexual health services in England, including hepatitis B vaccination in eligible individuals. Hepatitis B vaccination data is published as part of the Sexually transmitted infections (STIs): annual data Further information can also be found at GUMCAD STI Surveillance System.

Appendix 2: World Health Organization elimination targets and national progress

As advised in Chapter 6 any queries related to the data available at a sub-national level, to measure against WHO elimination targets and national progress, should be directed to regional facilitators, as laid out in Chapter 6.

Hepatitis B

Type	Elimination indicator	Target - 2030	Progress in England
Impact
	Hepatitis B surface antigen prevalence among children ≤5 years old	≤0.1%	0.0%
	Mother to child transmission rate (if targeted birth dose programme is used)	≤2%	<0.1%
	Hepatitis B mortality rate (the target would be a combined figure with HCV)	≤2 per 100,000	0.15 per 100,000 (2023)
Programmatic
	Proportion of people living with hepatitis B diagnosis	≥90%	31.0% to 46.8% (2022)
	Proportion of people diagnosed with hepatitis B with treatment initiated	≥80%	Data not available
	Coverage of maternal antenatal Hepatitis B surface antigen testing	≥90%	99.8% (2023/24)
	Coverage of antivirals for Hepatitis B surface antigen-positive pregnant women where eligible	≥90%	89.0%
	Percentage of new-borns who have received targeted timely birth dose	≥90%	98.8% (2021/22)
	Hepatitis B vaccine coverage (HepB3)	≥90%	91.2% (2023/24)
	Proportion of blood units screened for bloodborne infections	100%	100%
	Proportion of healthcare injection devices procured that are safety-engineered	90%	85%

Hepatitis C

Type	Elimination indicator	Target - 2030	Progress in England
Impact
	New annual hepatitis C infections among the general adult population	≤5 per 100,000	Data not available
	New annual hepatitis C infections among people who inject drugs	≤2 per 100	Data not available
	Hepatitis C mortality rate (the target would be a combined figure with HBV)	≤2 per 100,000	0.40 per 100,000 (2023)
Programmatic
	Proportion of people living with chronic hepatitis C diagnosed	≥90%	Data not available
	Proportion of people diagnosed with hepatitis C with treatment initiated	≥80%	78.3% (2024 report)
	Distribution of needles and syringes per person who injects drugs per year	300	Data not available
	Proportion of opioid agonist therapy among people who injects drugs	40%	58%
	Proportion of blood units screened for bloodborne infections	100%	100%
	Proportion of healthcare injection devices procured that are safety-engineered	90%	85%

Published 27 April 2026