4193 (2025). Hon Dr Ayesha Verrall to the Associate Minister of Health

4193 (2025). Hon Dr Ayesha Verrall to the Associate Minister of Health: What progress, if any, has been made in the quarter July to September 2024 toward the objective ‘Reduce barriers to access to hepatitis C treatments in the community’ under ‘Focus area 5: Integration and access to care’ in the National Hepatitis C Action Plan?

Hon Casey Costello: I am advised that during the July to September 2024 quarter, the Hepatitis C Support and Treatment Service, located within the Northern Region, continued to support complex patients that would be lost to follow-up. As a result, referrals to the services are continuing to grow, and 74 patients were under active management as at the end of September 2024. I am further advised that during the quarter, training that enables nurses and pharmacists to supply hepatitis C medication without prescription was widely promoted via a range of channels, to further reduce barriers to accessing community-based treatment.