Restrictions on access to direct-acting antivirals for people who inject drugs: The European Hep-CORE study and the role of patient groups in monitoring national HCV responses.

In 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) called for the elimination of viral hepatitis as a public health threat and established the targets of achieving an 80% reduction in new infections and a 65% reduction in deaths from the hepatitis C virus (HCV) by 2030. If European countries are to come close to reaching the WHO targets, they must squarely address the HCV prevention, testing and treatment needs of people who inject drugs (PWID). This viewpoint reports on findings from the 2016 European Hep-CORE study, which was unique in its utilisation of patient groups as a source of hepatitis policy information. We found widespread treatment restrictions affecting PWID in European countries and suggest that involving civil society stakeholders in monitoring is essential for implementing HCV treatment-as-prevention strategies as well as achieving broader viral hepatitis elimination targets.