Recently, the National Blood Transfusion Bill, 2025, was introduced in Parliament, and thalassaemia patients and advocacy groups have welcomed it.

About Blood Transfusion

• Blood transfusion is a medical procedure in which whole blood or specific blood components (such as red blood cells, plasma, platelets, or clotting factors) are transferred intravenously from a donor to a recipient’s circulation.
• Before a blood transfusion is given, many steps are taken to ensure the quality of the blood products, their compatibility, and the recipient’s safety.

Need For the National Blood Transfusion Bill

• Fragmented System: Blood transfusion services are run through a mix of public and private blood banks under non-uniform guidelines.
• Uneven Performance: While some states have efficient networks and traceability systems, others face shortages, expired stock, and weak monitoring.
• Weak Legal Mandate: The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) and State Blood Transfusion Councils operate primarily through policies and guidelines rather than binding law.
• High Human Costs: Thalassaemia patients, emergency cases, and recipients of poorly screened blood face avoidable shortages and infections.

Key Provisions of the Bill

• National Blood Transfusion Authority: The Bill proposes establishing a National Blood Transfusion Authority to provide centralised oversight and governance of blood transfusion services.
  • A national authority is meant to reduce state-to-state variation and provide technical oversight.
• Standardisation of Services: It seeks to lay down uniform national standards for the collection, testing, processing, storage, distribution, issuance, and transfusion of blood and blood components.
• Regulatory Oversight: The legislation mandates compulsory registration of all blood centres to eliminate unregulated operators and illegal or unsafe collection points.
• Supply Augmentation: The Bill promotes voluntary and non-remunerated blood donation to ensure a safe, sufficient, and ethical blood supply.
• Enforcement Mechanism: It introduces strict penal provisions to deter unsafe, unethical, or non-compliant practices in blood transfusion services.

Advantages of the Bill

• Legally Enforceable Patient Safety: The Bill makes testing and quality standards statutory obligations and provides legal recourse when safety norms are violated.
• Uniform National Standards: The Bill seeks to ensure uniform rules across states, reducing regulatory differences that affect referrals and the interstate transfer of blood units.
• Safer Emergency Transfusions: The Bill strengthens safety protocols to reduce the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections.
• Clarity and Accountability for Institutions: The Bill establishes clear registration, reporting, audit, and compliance requirements for hospitals and blood banks, creating uniform, transparent rules and clarity for Institutions.

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Challenges in Implementation of the Bill

• Centre–State Coordination Issues: Since health is a state subject, uniform national standards may conflict with local realities and will require flexible implementation and strong Centre–state coordination.
• Inspection and Enforcement Capacity: Effective implementation will depend on adequate staffing, laboratories, funding, trained personnel, and real-time data systems for the National Authority.
• Financial Stress on Smaller Blood Banks: The cost of upgrading infrastructure, training staff, and maintaining cold-chain logistics may strain smaller blood banks and risk closures in underserved areas if financial support is insufficient.
• Digital Traceability Requirements: The success of traceability provisions will depend on interoperable digital systems across public and private blood banks without disrupting blood supply or access.

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