Epidemiology of hepatitis C virus infection in a large Israeli health maintenance organization

Hepatitis C affects an estimated 130 million people worldwide and is a major cause of chronic liver disease. This retrospective database study aims to describe the epidemiology of HCV‐infected patients in Maccabi Healthcare Services, a 2‐million‐member health maintenance organization in Israel. HCV was identified by cross‐linking diagnoses, laboratory data, and dispensed HCV treatment (1993–2013). The point‐prevalence of HCV in 2012 and annual...