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Victims of the infected blood scandal are facing prolonged delays in receiving compensation, according to Sir Brian Langstaff, the chair of the public inquiry investigating the disaster. In a scathing report, Sir Brian highlighted “obvious injustices” in the design of the compensation scheme. The scandal, which affected an estimated 30,000 individuals who were infected with HIV and hepatitis B or C in the 1970s and 80s due to contaminated blood products, has had a lasting impact on the victims and their families.
The government has allocated £11.8bn for compensation payouts and has pledged to streamline the process to expedite payments to the affected individuals. The main report from the inquiry, released last year, revealed that the tragic events could have been prevented if different decisions had been made by health authorities at the time. There were significant failures in halting the importation of contaminated blood products from abroad, and evidence suggested that certain aspects of the scandal had been concealed.
Recently, Sir Brian authorized two additional days of hearings following a flood of correspondence expressing grave concerns about the handling of the compensation scheme. The subsequent 200-page report, released on Wednesday, exposed that victims had been further marginalized in the past year. The Infected Blood Compensation Authority has initiated claims for 2,043 people, with only 460 individuals receiving full compensation to date.
The new report from the inquiry proposes several recommendations to rectify the situation, including allowing victims to proactively apply for compensation without waiting to be contacted. Priority should be given to seriously ill or older victims as well as those who have never received compensation. Additionally, there are calls to address various injustices by extending compensation eligibility to individuals infected with HIV before 1982 and providing extra payments to NHS patients subjected to medical experimentation. It is imperative for the system to be more transparent and inclusive of the infected individuals and their families moving forward
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