Belgian government to compensate victims of transfusion-transmitted diseases

After more than two decades, a group of about 1,300 people who were infected by a blood transfusion with HIV or hepatitis C is still waiting to receive compensation from the Belgian government. At the request of public health minister Maggie De Block today, the Federal Health Care Knowledge Centre (KCE) published the government's intention to compensate the victims for the faulty transfusions.

KCE proposes a €20,000 grant for each of the direct victims. Partners and non-infected children would get up to €10,000 each.

"These patients come up against a wall in court, because a lack of knowledge at the time clears everyone of medical error," say the experts at KCE. "But that does not mean they shouldn't be compensated for the years of agony endured because of a faulty treatment.”

Altogether, the government wants to allocate more than €67 million to compensate the victims, but will first have to make room in the budget. “We do not currently have the financial resources to repay the victims," admits minister De Block.