The European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC) is warning of an epidemic of hepatitis A in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Hungary, as between them these countries have reported more than 2,000 cases since January, the ECDC said in a press release yesterday.
In the Czech Republic, 607 cases had been detected by the end of May this year, compared with 636 for the whole year last year, according to the State Institute of Health (SZU).
Prevalent among the infected are unhoused people, drug users, and people living in poor hygienic conditions with limited access to health care. According to the ECDC, the disease is also spreading among members of Roma communities in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
“This outbreak reminds us that hepatitis A can cause serious illness and death, especially in people with limited access to healthcare and basic hygiene. We need to strengthen awareness-raising, ensure access to vaccination in groups more likely to be exposed and ensure basic hygiene, especially in response to the increase in cases,” said Ole Heuer, Head of the ECDC’s One Health Unit, in a press release.
The last time the Czech Republic saw more cases was in 2016, when 930 people were infected, and in 2015 and 2017 there were more than 700 cases. Of the regions, the highest number of cases this year is in Prague (151), Central Bohemia (113) and Moravia-Silesia (96). Per capita, the incidence is highest in the Karlovy Vary Region, Prague and the Olomouc Region.
According to the National Health Service, unhoused people are currently vaccinated against hepatitis, but experts recommend vaccination for other groups as well. The chief hygienist and director of SZU, Barbora Mackova, said in May that she wanted to negotiate reimbursement for the vaccine from public health insurance. Currently citizens must pay for the vaccine, requiring two doses costing about CZK 1,700.
According to the ECDC, Slovakia has had the most cases since the beginning of the year (880), while the Czech Republic has more than 600 cases, with young children being the most affected. Hungary has reported 530 cases, and Austria 87, including three deaths. Three cases have also occurred in Germany, but the virus had the same genetic profile as in Austria and Hungary.
According to the ECDC, public health education should be adapted to the needs and knowledge of populations most likely to be infected. “Provide information in multiple languages, adapted to different literacy levels, and address rumours and misinformation that may be circulating,” the centre recommends.
Number of hepatitis A cases in the Czech Republic from 2015 to 2025:
| Year | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025* |
| Number of cases | 724 | 930 | 772 | 211 | 240 | 183 | 210 | 70 | 66 | 636 | 607 |
*until the end of May
