Ban on private blood collection agencies now in works
Bill pre-emptive strike against private companies setting up shop in Alberta
Private companies that pay individuals for providing blood or plasma will soon be banned from operating in Alberta, the NDP government said Monday in unveiling its third bill of the spring session.
“Donating blood should not be viewed as a business venture, but as a public resource that saves lives,” Health Minister Sarah Hoffman said shortly after introducing the Voluntary Blood Donations Act. “Some things are just too important to leave to the market. Blood should not go to the highest bidder, but to the patient who needs it the most.”
Hoffman described the bill as something of a pre-emptive strike since the government is not currently aware of any private collection agency trying to set up in Alberta. Nonetheless, she said there is some pressure to act now due to growing activity among such agencies in Canada, including the recent establishment of a private plasma donation clinic in Saskatoon.
If passed, the bill would prohibit offering any form of compensation — money, gift cards, tickets and so on — to people who provide blood and would also ban advertisements for paid donations. Canadian Blood Services, which manages the public blood supply on behalf of the provinces, is exempt from the legislation.
Paying individuals for blood is widely practised in some countries, particularly the United States. The U.S. uses that blood not only to help meet its own domestic needs, but also sells the blood and blood products to other countries, including Canada.
A number of health leaders have characterized that practice of buying and selling human material as ethically problematic, though Hoffman suggested the new bill was based more on the desire to protect the public blood supply.
Some things are just too important to leave to the market. Blood should not go to the highest bidder, but to the patient who needs it the most.
That’s because there is fear that allowing private collection agencies to pay donors and sell their blood on the international market would decrease donations to the public system.
However, critics suggested any ban is hypocritical while Canada continues to import more than 80 per cent of the plasma it needs each year from the U.S. and other countries that pay their donors.
Plasma is the liquid component of blood that carries the cells and platelets through the body. Demand for plasma has been increasing as it is used in various medical therapies such as immune globulin that is given to patients with compromised immune systems.
Last year, Alberta budgeted about $200 million for blood and blood products, about 60 per cent of which was to import plasma products.
Progressive Conservative health critic Richard Starke said it is disingenuous of the NDP government to disparage paid-for plasma while simultaneously buying it. He said he is not aware of any country that has a completely self-sufficient plasma donation system, so it makes sense to facilitate companies that can bring jobs and investment to the province.
“This government is now sending those jobs elsewhere,” Starke said.
Private collection agencies offer no threat to the public blood supply, he said, suggesting the NDP’s motivation has more to do with appeasing unionized workers.
The new bill did receive support from a number of health advocacy groups and unions, including the Canadian Union of Public Employees and the Health Sciences Association of Alberta — both of which represent employees of Canadian Blood Services.
Association president Mike Parker said keeping blood supplies under public control is the best way to ensure quality and safety.
However, the company behind the clinic in Saskatoon, Canadian Plasma Resources, said it is trying to increase the domestic production of plasma and reduce the dependency on foreign sources.