Two decades ago, 30,000 Canadians, recipients of blood and plasma products, were infected with HIV and hepatitis C. Some of the tainted blood was purchased from “blood brokers” whose supplies came from Arkansas prisons, L.A.’s “skid row” and Russian funeral homes. Confronted with a blood shortage and weighing the odds, Health Canada and the Canadian Red Cross, then stewards of Canada’s blood system, accepted it anyway.
As a hemophiliac, I was among the unfortunate Canadians who received tainted blood and became infected with hepatitis C. Newlywed and starting a family, I chose to deal with my fate by dedicating my life to obtaining compensation for the victims and creating a blood system with integrity. Together with fellow victims like John Plater and James Kreppner, we launched a massive battle with the federal and provincial governments that resulted in $5 billion in settlements, the largest of its kind in Canada.
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