OTTAWA - The federal prison service plans to introduce needle exchange programs in a bid to reduce the incidence of infectious diseases among inmates.

Hepatitis Australia is very disappointed the Government has chosen not to act to allocate funds in the budget to arrest the decline in hepatitis C treatment. The fall in treatment initiations has been evident for over six months and is putting the Minister’s stated goal of eliminating hepatitis C by 2030 in jeopardy.

AIVL has released a new report, looking at the needs of people living with Hepatitis C after leaving custodial settings in Australia.  The report contains a series of recommendations aimed at addressing the spread of blood borne viruses (BBVs) in the Australian community more broadly, including trialling of a Needle and Syringe Program (NSP) in prison and increased focus on transitional arrangements for people returning to the community.

Curative treatment uptake for chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is generally at its lowest in local areas where prevalence of the virus is at its highest, according to the inaugural Hepatitis C Mapping Project National Report 2016 recently launched in Melbourne.

GPs are a major part a new treatment that can eliminate hepatitis C in Australia, but more patients need to be identified to achieve the best results.

Hundreds of thousands of Australians with hepatitis C are failing to access new curative drugs, despite the Government subsidising them at huge cost to the taxpayer.

The trend means the Government is at risk of missing its target to eradicate hepatitis C and of spending far more than necessary on the treatments.

Hepatitis Australia is urging government to invest in programs designed to increase the uptake of PBS-listed direct acting antivirals that cure hepatitis C.

Australia will not achieve the goal of eradicating hepatitis C without further action to ensure patients are identified and treated.

Speaking with PharmaDispatch following her appointment as president of Hepatitis Australia, Felicity McNeill PSM, said so much positive work has been done, with thousands of people cured, but all stakeholders must come together to address the fact treatment rates are in decline.