Ruling favors HIV patient needing liver

By Charles Sheehan
The Associated Press

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William Jean Gough's liver is deteriorating because of hepatitis C. He was accepted as a strong candidate for the operation in August by Pittsburgh's Thomas E. Starzl Transplant Institute.

The state Department of Public Welfare, which oversees the state's Medicaid program, however, denied coverage for Gough, saying infection with the virus that causes AIDS is a life-limiting condition that rules out a transplant.

In a ruling made public yesterday, Judge Bernadene Kennedy dismissed the state's argument, saying scientific advances allow people with HIV to live full lives.

Gough, 46, "could live 10, 20, 30 years or more with a liver transplant," Kennedy wrote.

The judge expedited the case because Gough's condition worsens by the day and he could be ineligible for a transplant if his liver deteriorates too much.

Doctors said the Altoona man could die in nine to 12 months without a transplant. The average wait is six to 12 months.

The Department of Public Welfare could appeal the ruling.

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