What are your experiences with getting access to treatment for hep C?
If you have already had treatment before, it can sometimes be hard. I had combination therapy four or five years ago, and it took me two years to get compassionate access to pegylated interferon treatment. It’s really frustrating when you want treatment, and there’s so much of a government push to get people treated, but due to their treatment guidelines and policies it can be really difficult if you’ve had previous treatment. That’s one of the things HFA has been advocating to governments about. The way the hospital system works, with bookings and appointments—if you’re feeling down from the treatment, and then you get stuck waiting for ages to see someone, it’s not good. It would be nice if there was a better case-by-case needs-based system. And yet it was the government-controlled blood supply that was the source of the hep C in the first place. Exactly, the main bone of contention is that all of this has come about through blood products which were infected. Many people with bleedi
