Responsibility for notification #
Medical practitioners are required to notify the secretary of the Ministry of Health if they reasonably suspect a patient has HIV, or when HIV is reasonably suspected to be the cause of death on the basis of a post-mortem examination (Public Health Act 2010 (NSW) s 54). The maximum penalty for failure to comply with s 54 is 50 penalty units. Pathology laboratories are required to notify the secretary of the Ministry of Health, via a report in the approved form, of a confirmed HIV-positive test result (Public Health Act 2010 (NSW) s 55). The maximum penalty for failure to comply with s 55 is 50 penalty units.
Mode of notification #
In New South Wales, notification must not include the person’s name or address (Public Health Act 2010 (NSW) s 56(1)).
