Hepatitis C is caused by a blood-borne virus that is spread by contact with infected blood (e.g. by sharing of injection needles). It can be treated effectively using direct-acting antiviral agents. NHS England plans to eliminate hepatitis C virus (HCV) in England by 2025 – some five years ahead of the World Health Organization’s global goal of elimination. The majority of people with HCV are people who inject drugs (PWIDs). Pilot studies have shown that the testing of PWIDs in community pharmacies that provide needle and syringe services is effective and well received by those individuals.

A Community Pharmacy Hepatitis C Antibody Testing Service was added to the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework in 2020 as an Advanced Service starting on 1 September. There is a fee of £36 per test performed on an eligible PWID, plus the cost of the test kit. Where the test produces a positive result, the PWID will be referred for appropriate further testing and treatment.