Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 28 November 2012 to Question 129961, how many sufferers of bleeding disorders who received contaminated blood are in receipt of ex gratia packages; and what estimate he has made of the number who are eligible for such a package.

As at 22 October 2014, there are 532 individuals with bleeding disorders in receipt of at least one regular non-discretionary ex-gratia payment from MFET Ltd or Skipton Fund Ltd, for their HIV or Hepatitis C infection respectively. The Department has not made an estimate of those eligible for regular non-discretionary ex-gratia payments who have not to date applied for such payments.

In addition, any individual with a bleeding disorder infected with HIV and in receipt of a regular payment from MFET Ltd is eligible to apply for discretionary support from the Macfarlane Trust. Any individual infected with only Hepatitis C who has received either a stage 1 or stage 2 payment from the Skipton Fund Ltd is eligible for discretionary support from the Caxton Foundation. There is also a range of other support for all such individuals, including counselling and cover for the cost of a Prescription Pre-payment Certificate.