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Header: NC Hepatitis B Prevention Programs

North Carolina has met the national standard of hepatitis B prevention efforts with the implementation of perinatal and adolescent immunization programs. Both segments of the North Carolina Hepatitis B Prevention Program have been increasingly successful over the past decade.

The North Carolina Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Program

Since February 1, 1990, North Carolina state law (G.S. 130A-135 and 15A NCAC 19A.0203) has mandated that all pregnant women be tested for hepatitis B, unless known to be infected. Local health departments (LHDs) track cases of hepatitis B-infected women and the infants born to them. Tracking efforts are conducted to ensure that infants are vaccinated, develop immunity, and are not infected with hepatitis B virus.

Post-vaccination serologic testing - both hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) testing and anti-HBs testing - of infants is recommended to determine the success of the preventive measures, to identify infected infants and to identify infants that need revaccination. The North Carolina Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Program is making a major impact in the fight against perinatally-acquired hepatitis B infection.


Logo: NC Division of Public Health
Link: N.C. Women's and Children's Health Web Site

The North Carolina Sixth-Grade School-Site Hepatitis B Immunization Initiative Ends

Since July 1, 1994, North Carolina immunization law requires all children to complete the hepatitis B vaccination series prior to school entry. In 1995, North Carolina launched a statewide 10-year initiative to offer hepatitis B vaccinations to all sixth-graders through school-based clinics. This initiative was designed to reach children who missed the vaccination series prior to enactment of state law. This initiative concluded with the 2005-2006 school year because all children entering sixth grade were born prior to July 1, 1994 and had been mandated by state law to receive the hepatitis B vaccine prior to school entry.

School-site immunization clinics provided a unique opportunity to vaccinate adolescents before the age of greatest risk of exposure to the hepatitis B virus. This initiative offered the best hope for completing the recommended vaccinations over a six-month period, and it was flexible and convenient for parents.

The goal of the Sixth-Grade School-Site Immunization Initiative was to vaccinate at least 70 percent of North Carolina's sixth-graders against hepatitis B.

For more information about the NC Hepatitis B Prevention Program, contact: Patricia T. Poole, R.N., Hepatitis B Coordinator, Immunization Branch, 919-707-5550.
 

 

Last Updated: January 14, 2008

The purpose of this web site is both educational and informative.
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