The Costa Rican Social Security Agency (CCSS), which runs the country’s national public health system, announced the availability of a highly effective treatment for Hepatitis C.

Whereas previously the virus was visually impossible to treat in a definitive manner, a pill became available in the U.S. in 2014 which gave up to 99 percent cure rates using a 12 – 24 week treatment, according to scientific information on Wikipedia.

Costa Rican public health officials were able to negotiate an affordable price to be able to offer the treatment, which in the U.S. can run up to US$91,000 per patient.

Hepatitis C, a blood-borne disease, can cause severe liver problems if untreated.

According to Dr. Chaves Matamoros, head of pharmaceuticals at the CCSS, the drug Sofosfuvir + Ledipasvir, marketed under the trade name Harvoni, is produced at this time by only one pharmaceutical laboratory, with costs running up to US$1,000 per pill.

In Costa Rica, about 30 new cases of chronic hepatitis C virus infection are diagnosed each year, according to information provided by gastroenterology specialists at the country’s national hospitals. This year an estimated 50 patients will start this new treatment.

The drug Sofosbuvir + Ledipasvir is a therapeutic combination with proven efficacy and safety, that has cure rates close to 94 percent even in patients with cirrhosis.  “It represents a real therapeutic innovation that far exceeds the effectiveness of the previous therapy used by the institution,” said the CCSS, explaining the the prior treatment of peginterferon + ribavirin was contraindicated for use in patients with liver disease, and only had a 57 percent case in other patients..

Hepatitis C is a virus that causes inflammation of the liver and can be transmitted by blood transfusions by blood products that haven’t been properly screened.

It can also be transmitted sexually, and through circumcision or via other activities where there is a rupture of the skin such as tattoos, aesthetic piercings, or intravenous drug use, said the CCSS.

Hepatitis C is characterized by a sudden onset of weight loss, abdominal discomfort, nausea and vomiting and can progress to jaundice. A high percentage of cases – between 50 – 80 percent – present chronic infection, and about half of those with chronic infection can develop cirrhosis or liver cancer.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that between 130 and 179 million people worldwide have a chronic hepatitis C infection, and list ledipasvir/sofosbuvir on their list of essential medicines for health systems.

The treatment “is generally well tolerated. Common side effects include muscle pains, headache, nausea, rash, and cough. It is unclear if use in pregnancy is safe for the baby.

Wikipedia noted that due to the treatment’s high cost in the U.S., “Some people travel to India to get access to lower cost medication.”