MOSCOW, September 23 (RAPSI) – Russia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit which had been filed by a Muscovite seeking to lift a ban on the adoption of Russian children by people with HIV, RIA Novosti reports.

Judge Alla Nazarova has thereby upheld the legality of the list of diseases, which the government adopted last year to ban adoption or foster parenting for people with certain illnesses. According to the list, people with infectious diseases cannot adopt until the end of the follow-up care period due to the possibility of a remission. Other listed illnesses include tuberculosis, drug addiction and mental disorders.

The HIV-positive plaintiff wrote in the lawsuit that this was contrary to federal laws on healthcare and HIV/AIDS prevention. The plaintiff’s attorney, Ilnur Sharapov, pointed out that Russian law guarantees non-discrimination of HIV/AIDS-infected people.

He also said that, considering the specifics of such diseases as HIV and hepatitis С, people infected with them can safely become adoptive or foster parents provided they comply with simple safety rules.

However, representatives of the Healthcare Ministry argued that the termination of the disputed standard would be contrary to the Family Code, which obliges parents to take care of their children. Expert taking the stand asked the court who would take care of the child if a mutated virus seriously harmed the infected parent.

State prosecutor argued that the lifting of the ban would concern not only a relatively healthy plaintiff, but also infected people with failing health, and asked the court to rule against the plaintiff.