Rachel Halford is President of The World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA) and CEO of The Hepatitis C Trust − a national UK peer-led civil society organization. Alongside advocacy and raising awareness, Rachel leads The Hepatitis C Trust in delivering a national peer program across local communities and prisons, employing over 160 paid staff and more than 180 volunteers; the majority of which have lived experience of hepatitis C, substance misuse and/or criminal justice. The Trust’s peer programs reach and support those hardest to engage affected by viral hepatitis and health inequalities. Passionate about equality and human rights Rachel has also led other non-governmental organizations including Women in Prison, a national UK campaigning organization that provides support and advocacy for women affected by the criminal justice system. She also sits on a number of national, global and European strategic boards representing the patient voice, including four years as the WHA European Regional Board member. Rachel has over 25 years’ experience of working with people at high-risk of viral hepatitis and liver disease generally − the homeless, people affected by the criminal justice system, substance users and migrants. Diagnosed with hepatitis C in 1998, Rachel completed a year of interferon treatment clearing the virus in 2007.

Prof. Loreta Kondili MD, Ph.D. is a Senior Clinical Researcher at the Center for Global Health of the Italian Institute of Health (Istituto Superiore di Sanità) in Rome. Dr. Kondili has worked in viral hepatitis and liver diseases for the last 25 years, and her main research focuses on epidemiology, clinical profiles, and therapy of chronic viral liver disease. She has strong competencies in Health Technology Assessment and management and analysis of real-life big databases. She has been involved in the scientific coordination of several Italian networks in the field of chronic liver disease. She established and is currently leading the Italian Platform for the Study of Viral Hepatitis (HCV, HBV, and HDV) Therapies (PITER) through more than 100 national and global collaborations. Her current work includes broadening cost-effective options evaluating the costs of inaction, useful for viral hepatitis elimination health policies in Italy. She is currently serving as an expert for the Italian Ministry of Health for the National Hepatitis plan implementation and is a member of the steering committee for HCV screening in Italy. Her policy and advocacy efforts focuses on evidence-based guiding health policies to reduce chronic liver disease burden. She is currently an European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) Policy and Public Health Committee Member. Dr. Kondili has been actively involved in teaching students and fellows.