Embassies asked for help as 10-year effort to find Hep C victims nears end

[Guest guest]

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/in-brief-embassies-asked-for-help-as-10y\

ear-effort-to-find-hep-c-victims-nears-end-2457827.html

In brief: Embassies asked for help as 10-year effort to find Hep C victims nears

end

Sunday December 12 2010

A global hunt is on to track down the remaining women who were given

contaminated blood during the Hepatitis C catastrophe. By the time the 10-year

programme to locate all potential victims ends, Ireland's worst-ever health

scandal is expected to have cost the State more than ¤1bn arising from

compensation, legal fees, inquiry reports and the programme to track down people

who received infected blood.

Irish embassies have been asked to assist in the final push. Dr Emer Lawlor,

deputy national medical director of the Irish Blood Transfusion Service (IBTS),

said the tracing programme should be concluded by May next year.

So far, 3,726 recipients have been identified. Of these people, 2,599 tested

negative and 325 had evidence of exposure to Hepatitis C but have since lost the

virus.

In all, 295 people still have Hep C. " It means from that particular period,

there are still 71 people whose identities are known to the IBTS who have still

not been tested. Of these, 32 people declined to be tested, " said Dr Lawlor.