Hepatitis C Prevalence on the Rise but Screening at Safety Net Institutions Lagging behind.

Our study findings suggest that a significant portion of patients in our community had missed opportunities for screening in our hospital. Our community had an estimated 5.9% prevalence, higher than the national and state averages. Caucasian men had higher prevalences. This study suggests the need for broader screening initiatives and more focused resource allocation, perhaps to safety net institutions, to decrease the burden of HCV.