17 Catch Hepatitis from Contaminated Blood

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17 Catch Hepatitis from Contaminated Blood

The Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday said 17 people who received transfusions of blood donated by carriers of Hepatitis B and C since April 1999 had been infected with the diseases. That increased the number of people infected by transfusions of Red Cross blood from nine in 2004 to 26. Scandals surrounding blood donated to the Red Cross have erupted several times since 2003. The KCDC¡¯s blood tests of 4,237 out of 10,360 recipients of transfusions of blood donated by carriers of Hepatitis B and C from April 1999 until April 2004 showed that eight were infected with Hepatitis B and nine suspected of being infected with either strain. The Health and Welfare Ministry plans to pay those infected with Hepatitis B W30 million (US$30,000) each and those with Hepatitis C W40 million in compensation once it is confirmed that error at the Red Cross was to blame. It will also conduct a follow-up survey every six months and pay all treatment where the infection has been clearly linked to the transfusion. (englishnews@... )

http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200606/200606190035.html