The Legal Landscape for People Living with Chronic Hepatitis B in Australia: : A Consensus-Based View of Priority...

The law and legal processes have a demonstrable impact on the public-health management and lived experience of people living with blood-borne viruses. However, very little is known about how the legal environment informs the experience of chronic hepatitis B or the justiciable issues experienced by people living with and affected by the virus. This article reports on a deliberative consensus process conducted with leaders of hepatitis B-related community organizations in Australia that aimed to identify, characterize, and prioritize the legal issues faced by people in the communities they support. Four priority legal areas were identified in relation to: 1) hepatitis B testing and disclosure; 2) migration law; 3) public health orders; and 4) hepatitis B-related stigma and discrimination. Identifying and describing these areas of law and justiciable issues, and organizing them through a consideration of their urgency, prevalence, and health impacts is a key starting point from which to address the neglect of these issues in current policy and practice, and to support the framing and interpretation of further research with people in affected communities. The results of this deliberative consensus process establish clear priorities for further research and for legal and public health policy, practice, resourcing, and reform.