Some additional bioethical questions related to hepatitis B antigen

Dr. Baruch S. Blumberg has recently raised important questions concerning the bioethics of prevention and cure of hepatitis. This paper extends his inquiry with a view toward examining the full range of the complexity of such issues as the restriction of the use of blood infected with hepatitis B antigen, the screening and possible isolation of health care personnel found to be carriers, and the like. It pointed out that for issues like these, there is not only a conflict between personal liberties and the public interest but also a potential conflict of individual rights, a theme not treated fully by Blumberg. The complex issues that emerge when these two themes are considered together are examined in light of the work of the contemporary American philosopher, John Rawls. His theory permits one to consider these two ethical themes together in analyzing moral problems. In this light, a new strategy is proposed for addressing bioethical questions concerning hepatitis B antigen.