The U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps, a uniformed service of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), publicly announced that it is changing its medical standards to accept future applicants living with chronic hepatitis B and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).
These conditions used to be medically disqualifying, but in recent years, treatments have made both HIV and hepatitis B manageable chronic conditions, similar to hypertension and hyperlipidemia. Applicants meeting new medical accession standards for these conditions may now be able to serve their country in uniform as a Public Health Service officer.
Under the USPHS Commissioned Corps updated medical accession standards, which will take effect on December 1, 2022, applicants with HIV who are on treatment with antiretroviral therapy (ART), who have an undetectable viral load, and show no evidence of impaired immunity, will not be medically disqualified for this condition. Applicants living with chronic hepatitis B who show low viral blood levels and no evidence of clinically significant liver damage will also no longer be medically disqualified for this condition.
