Highlighting critical gaps in India’s blood transfusion system, the Thalassemia Patients Advocacy Group (TPAG) on Tuesday released a comprehensive position paper titled “Ensuring Safe Blood for All: Strengthening Blood Safety Practices”, calling for urgent and systemic reforms to protect millions of transfusion-dependent patients across the country.

The position paper was formally announced following a high-level strategic dialogue held in the national capital and brings together perspectives from public health, science, law, policy, and lived patient experience. Eminent contributors include Prof. N.K. Ganguly, former Director-General of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR); public health advocate Prof. Bejon Kumar Misra; thalassemia patient advocate Suneha Paul; senior Supreme Court advocate P.C. Sen; and BJP National Spokesperson Tuhin A. Sinha.

Framing blood safety as a matter of survival, dignity, and constitutional responsibility, TPAG stressed that for people living with thalassemia—who require lifelong, regular blood transfusions—any lapse in safety protocols can have life-altering consequences. The paper warns that gaps in screening standards, uneven access to advanced diagnostics, and fragmented regulation continue to expose patients to preventable risks, including transfusion-transmitted infections such as HIV and Hepatitis B and C.

“Safe and timely access to blood is not a discretionary healthcare service; it is a foundational pillar of public health,” the paper notes, arguing that blood safety must be addressed proactively rather than only after adverse outcomes occur.

Based on deliberations with policymakers, clinicians, scientists, legal experts, and patient groups, the document identifies persistent systemic challenges. These include the non-uniform adoption of Nucleic Acid Testing (NAT) across blood banks, the absence of a consolidated national blood law, inequitable access to safe blood in rural and underserved areas, and limited transparency and accountability within the transfusion ecosystem. According to TPAG, these shortcomings collectively erode patient trust and disproportionately affect vulnerable populations.

To address these concerns, the position paper lays out a set of clear, action-oriented recommendations. Key among them is the mandatory implementation of Nucleic Acid Testing across all blood banks to reduce window-period infections and ensure uniform screening standards nationwide. It also calls for the enactment of a comprehensive Blood Safety Act to codify patient rights and institutional responsibilities, and the launch of a dedicated National Thalassemia Control Programme integrating prevention, screening, and long-term care.

The paper further urges the government to strengthen employment protections for thalassemia patients under existing disability frameworks and to accelerate indigenous gene therapy research, with a strong emphasis on affordability and equitable access.

Speaking at the launch, Deepak Chopra, Mentor, Thalassemia Patients Advocacy Group, said the issue goes far beyond medical protocols. “This is not only about healthcare systems; it is about dignity, equity, and the right to safe, life-saving interventions. For thalassemia patients, every transfusion carries hope—but also fear when safety is not assured. Our position paper is a call to place patient lives at the centre of policy and move blood safety from the margins to the mainstream of healthcare governance,” he said.

TPAG reiterated its commitment to working closely with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, state governments, healthcare institutions, and civil society organisations to translate these recommendations into concrete policy action and on-ground implementation. Ensuring safe blood for all, the group emphasised, is both a public health necessity and a matter of social justice.

The position paper concludes with a strong message that India has both the capacity and the responsibility to build a resilient, transparent, and equitable blood safety system. With coordinated, evidence-based reforms, TPAG asserts, safe blood must become a guaranteed national standard—rather than an uneven privilege.