The Irish Blood Transfusion Service's new policy on deferring donors who have lived for five years or more in the UK comes into force at blood donor clinics on Monday. The move aims to reduce any possible risk of vCJD transmission in blood transfusion.
The blood bank is asking existing donors who fall into the five-year category not to give blood until new scientific evidence becomes available. This will mean a loss of 5 per cent of current blood donors and an overall loss of 7,500 donations over the coming weeks.