What can I claim secondary to hepatitis b?
8 conditions in the Repatriation Medical Authority's Statements of Principles list hepatitis b as a factor. If DVA has accepted your hepatitis b, each of these has a documented pathway to a further claim.
At a glance
- Accepted conditionHepatitis B
- Conditions it may open8
- SourceRMA SoPs
- Chart Review$600 + GST
How a secondary claim works
Some Statement of Principles factors are not about service at all — they name another condition. Where DVA has already accepted your hepatitis b, and another condition's SoP lists hepatitis b as a factor, that part of the next claim is already established on your file. How a secondary claim works, in full →
Conditions that list hepatitis b as a factor
Quoted from the instrument. A pathway existing is not the same as a claim succeeding — each factor carries thresholds your record has to satisfy.
Cirrhosis of the liver
RH No. 1 of 2017 · BoP No. 2 of 2017
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (4): “having chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (8): “having chronic hepatitis before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (9): “having autoimmune chronic active hepatitis before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (10): “having steatohepatitis before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (11): “being infected with human immunodeficiency virus, in the presence of chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus or chronic infection with the hepatitis C virus, before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (31): “having chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening] — factor (35): “having chronic hepatitis before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening] — factor (36): “having autoimmune chronic active hepatitis before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening] — factor (37): “having steatohepatitis before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening] — factor (38): “being infected with human immunodeficiency virus, in the presence of chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus or chronic infection with the hepatitis C virus, before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening]
Balance of Probabilities — factor (4): “having chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (8): “having chronic hepatitis before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (9): “having autoimmune chronic active hepatitis before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (10): “having steatohepatitis before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (11): “being infected with human immunodeficiency virus, in the presence of chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus or chronic infection with the hepatitis C virus, before the clinical onset of cirrhosis of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (29): “having chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening] — factor (33): “having chronic hepatitis before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening] — factor (34): “having autoimmune chronic active hepatitis before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening] — factor (35): “having steatohepatitis before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening] — factor (36): “being infected with human immunodeficiency virus, in the presence of chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus or chronic infection with the hepatitis C virus, before the clinical worsening of cirrhosis of the liver” [worsening]
Note: chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus is defined in the Schedule 1 - Dictionary.
Note: chronic hepatitis is defined in the Schedule 1 - Dictionary.
Note: autoimmune chronic active hepatitis is defined in the Schedule 1 - Dictionary.
Note: chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus and chronic infection with the hepatitis C virus are defined in the Schedule 1 - Dictionary.
Hepatitis C
RH No. 13 of 2018 · BoP No. 14 of 2018
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (2): “being infected with the hepatitis A, hepatitis B, hepatitis D or hepatitis E virus before the clinical worsening of hepatitis C” [worsening]
Balance of Probabilities — factor (2): “being infected with the hepatitis A, hepatitis B, hepatitis D or hepatitis E virus before the clinical worsening of hepatitis C” [worsening]
Malignant neoplasm of the bile duct
RH No. 53 of 2024 · BoP No. 54 of 2024
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (7): “having chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus at the time of clinical onset” [clinical onset]
Balance of Probabilities — factor (7): “having chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus at the time of clinical onset” [clinical onset]
Note: chronic infection with hepatitis B virus is defined in the Schedule 1 - Dictionary.
Malignant neoplasm of the liver
RH No. 31 of 2020 · BoP No. 32 of 2020
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (2): “having chronic infection with hepatitis B virus before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (6): “having chronic hepatitis before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of the liver” [clinical onset]
Balance of Probabilities — factor (2): “having chronic infection with hepatitis B virus before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of the liver” [clinical onset] — factor (6): “having chronic hepatitis before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of the liver” [clinical onset]
Note: chronic infection with hepatitis B virus is defined in the Schedule 1 - Dictionary.
Note: chronic hepatitis is defined in the Schedule 1 - Dictionary.
Malignant neoplasm of the pancreas
RH No. 103 of 2021 · BoP No. 104 of 2021
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (11): “having infection with hepatitis B virus before the clinical onset of malignant neoplasm of the pancreas” [clinical onset]
This factor appears in the Reasonable Hypothesis instrument only, which applies to operational service.
Polyarteritis nodosa
RH No. 33 of 2020 · BoP No. 34 of 2020
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (1): “having infection with hepatitis B virus at the time of the clinical onset of polyarteritis nodosa” [clinical onset] — factor (6): “having had a hepatitis B vaccination within the three months before the clinical onset of polyarteritis nodosa” [clinical onset] — factor (7): “having infection with hepatitis B virus at the time of the clinical worsening of polyarteritis nodosa” [worsening]
Balance of Probabilities — factor (1): “having infection with hepatitis B virus at the time of the clinical onset of polyarteritis nodosa” [clinical onset] — factor (3): “having infection with hepatitis B virus at the time of the clinical worsening of polyarteritis nodosa” [worsening]
Portal vein thrombosis
RH No. 107 of 2022 · BoP No. 108 of 2022
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (14): “having chronic infection with hepatitis B virus at the time of the clinical onset of portal vein thrombosis” [clinical onset]
This factor appears in the Reasonable Hypothesis instrument only, which applies to operational service.
Note: chronic infection with hepatitis B virus is defined in the Schedule 1 - Dictionary.
Reactive arthritis
RH No. 75 of 2018 · BoP No. 76 of 2018
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (3): “being vaccinated with hepatitis B vaccine within the 30 days before the clinical onset of reactive arthritis” [clinical onset]
Balance of Probabilities — factor (3): “being vaccinated with hepatitis B vaccine within the 30 days before the clinical onset of reactive arthritis” [clinical onset]
Other accepted conditions that also open cirrhosis of the liver
If any of these is also on your file, it reaches some of the same conditions hepatitis b does.
What DVA means by hepatitis b
A claim is tested against the definition first. If the diagnosis on your file does not meet this wording, the factors below never get reached — so it is worth checking that what your doctor wrote matches what the instrument requires.
Hepatitis B, for the purposes of the Statement of Principles, for the purposes of this Statement of Principles, hepatitis B means infection with the hepatitis B virus resulting in: (a) an acute, symptomatic, clinical illness characterised by inflammation of the liver and commonly accompanied by fever, tiredness, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, abdominal discomfort and jaundice; or (b) a chronic infection of at least six months duration and which may involve both inflammation of the liver and the development of fibrosis in the longer term. Both acute and chronic infection must be confirmed by laboratory testing for hepatitis B serological or nucleic acid markers, or both. (3) While hepatitis B attracts ICD-10-AM code B16, B18.0 or B18.1, in applying this Statement of Principles the meaning of hepatitis B is that given in subsection (2). (4) For subsection (3), a reference to an ICD-10-AM code is a reference to the code assigned to a particular kind of injury or disease in The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM), Ninth Edition, effective date of 1 July 2015, copyrighted by the Independent Hospital Pricing Authority, ISBN 978-1-76007-020-5.
Aggravation-only factors. In this instrument, subsections 9(3) apply only to material contribution to, or aggravation of, hepatitis b where it was already present before or during service. If service caused hepatitis b outright, those factors are not available to you.
RH No. 13 of 2017 · BoP No. 14 of 2017 · 5 factors
What could support a claim for hepatitis b?
The Statement of Principles for hepatitis b names 2 other conditions among its own factors. If any of these is already accepted on your file, it may be the factor that carries a hepatitis b claim — quoted here from the instrument.
Diabetes mellitus
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (3): “for chronic infection only, (a) having been a Prisoner of War of Japan before the clinical onset of hepatitis B; (b) having served in South-East Asia, the Mediterranean region or the Pacific region during World War 2 before the clinical onset of hepatitis B; (c) being treated with an immunosuppressive drug in the five years before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (d) being infected with human immunodeficiency virus before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (e) undergoing solid organ, stem cell or bone marrow transplantation before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (f) undergoing a course of therapeutic radiation for cancer, where the liver was in the field of radiation, before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (g) for females only, consuming a total of at least 55 kilograms of alcohol within the ten years before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (h) for males only, consuming a total of at least 110 kilograms of alcohol within the ten years before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (i) having diabetes mellitus for at least the five years before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (j) being obese for at least the five years before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (k) undergoing surgical resection of hepatocellular carcinoma in the two years before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (l) being within the six month postpartum period at the time of the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; (m) having severe hepatic iron overload at the time of the clinical worsening of hepatitis B; or (n) having evidence of chronic infection with schistosomiasis involving the liver before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B” [onset and worsening]
Hepatitis C
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (4): “being infected with the hepatitis A, hepatitis C, hepatitis D or hepatitis E virus before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B” [worsening]
Balance of Probabilities — factor (4): “being infected with the hepatitis A, hepatitis C, hepatitis D or hepatitis E virus before the clinical worsening of hepatitis B” [worsening]
Reviewed by Dr Thomas Perkins
Founding doctor, Veterans Health Centre · former RAAF aviation medical officer · 13 years working exclusively with ADF members and veterans. Full profile →
Hepatitis B accepted?
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