20. Am I protected under the Disability Discrimination Ordinance if I am infected with HIV/AIDS? If I turn up for help at any hospital or clinic, can it refuse to treat me?

20. Am I protected under the Disability Discrimination Ordinance if I am infected with HIV/AIDS? If I turn up for help at any hospital or clinic, can it refuse to treat me?

The answer to the first question is "yes", because the definition of disability under the DDO includes the presence of organisms in the body that cause or are capable of causing disease or illness. This includes HIV infection, which means if you are infected with HIV, you are equally protected under the DDO, the same as other persons with a disability.

The hospital or clinic cannot refuse to treat you on the grounds that you have HIV/AIDS, unless it can show that providing treatment to you would impose unjustifiable hardship on it ( section 4 of the DDO). This is not expected to happen in normal circumstances.