Infection with the hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a significant public health concern in the US, disproportionately affecting Americans of Asian, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander descent, despite the availability of a simple blood test, approved treatments, and an effective vaccine. Hep B United, a national campaign to support and leverage the success of community-based HBV coalitions, convened a partner summit in 2012 to develop a strategic response to the HHS Action Plan for the Prevention, Care, and Treatment of Viral Hepatitis. The resulting community action plan focuses on advancing three areas of the HHS plan: educating providers and communities to reduce health disparities; improving testing and linkage to care to prevent HBV-related liver disease and cancer; and eliminating perinatal HBV transmission.

HBV cross-training for providers and allied staff, particularly around identification and screening of high risk groups and case management, would greatly enhance services along with additional funding. Findings support national hepatitis B strategy recommendations made by the Institute of Medicine and Office of Minority Health.

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The Technologies of Information and Communication (TIC) are responsible for the development of innovative paradigms. Thus, the Internet allows users to communicate by overcoming geographical frontiers. This access to everything and everyone also opens on another phenomenon like, for some users, to invest themselves in missions usually reserved for experts. This is the prescriptive roles that arrogate to themselves certain groups of users who then try to take the place of agencies duly authorized to act in a particular subject area.