§ Mr. Robin CookTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will give figures for the charges made for the collection of blood and blood products by each regional transfusion centre;
(2) what guidance has been issued on the pricing of blood products.
§ Mr. DorrellNo charge is made for blood which is freely donated by our volunteer donors. From 1 April it is our policy that regional transfusion centres (RTCs) should recover the cost of collecting, processing and transporting blood by levying handling charges on the user hospitals. Within this general policy it is for the regional transfusion centres, following consultation with the users to determine an appropriate structure for handling charges to recover their operating costs. Information about these individual arrangements is not held centrally.
§ Mr. Robin CookTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the future of the national blood transfusion service.
§ Mr. DorrellWe greatly appreciate the efforts of the national blood transfusion service (NBTS) and the altruism of our voluntary and unpaid donors for maintaining adequate blood supplies in this country. The last major change in the national blood transfusion service was the establishment in 1989 of the national directorate to co-ordinate the activities of the regional transfusion centres in relation to national policies and strategies for the blood supply. Organisation of the national blood transfusion service is kept under review.