Law of the People’s Republic of China on Blood Donation

(Adopted at the 29th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eighth National People’s Congress on December 29, 1997)

Article 1 This Law is enacted to ensure the supply and safety of blood for clinical use, protect the health of blood donors and users, carry forward humanitarianism, and promote socialist material and cultural-ethical advancement.

Article 2 The state institutes a gratuitous blood donation system.

The state encourages healthy citizens from 18 to 55 years of age to voluntarily donate blood.

Article 3 The local people’s governments at various levels shall, within their own administrative areas, exercise leadership in the work of blood donation, make overall plans for their work, and be responsible for organizing and coordinating relevant departments in the effort to make the work a success.

Article 4 The administrative departments of health under the people’s governments at or above the county level shall exercise supervision over and administration of blood donation.

The Red Cross societies at various levels shall take part in and promote the work of blood donation according to law.

Article 5 The people’s governments at various levels shall take measures to widely publicize the significance of blood donation, disseminate scientific knowledge about blood donation, and carry out education programs to prevent and control the transmission of diseases through blood.

The media shall promote blood donation for the benefit of the public.

Article 6 State organs, the military, social organizations, enterprises, public institutions, residents’ committees, and villagers’ committees shall encourage and arrange for citizens of the right age of these entities or in their residential areas to donate blood.

The department in charge of health under the Chinese People’s Liberation Army shall formulate measures for mobilizing and arranging for active-duty servicepersons to donate blood.

A blood donor shall be issued with the gratuitous blood donation certificate prepared by the administrative department of health under the State Council, and may be given appropriate subsidies by relevant entities.

Article 7 The state encourages state functionaries, active-duty servicepersons, and students of institutions of higher learning to take the lead in donating blood, setting a good example in fostering new social values.

Article 8 A blood donor center, being an institution for collecting and providing blood for clinical use, is a nonprofit organization for public benefit. A blood donor center for collecting blood from among citizens shall be established subject to the approval of the administrative department of health under the State Council or under the people’s government of the province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government. A blood donor center shall provide safe, sanitary, and convenient conditions for blood donors. The requirements for the establishment of a blood donor center and the measures for the administration thereof shall be formulated by the administrative department of health under the State Council.

Article 9 A blood donor center shall conduct necessary medical checkup on blood donors free of charge; where a person’s health condition does not meet the requirements for blood donation, the blood donor center shall explain the situation to him and shall not collect blood from him. The requirements for the health condition of blood donors shall be provided by the administrative department of health under the State Council.

The amount of blood collected from a blood donor by a blood donor center shall in general be 200 ml. at a time, and may not exceed 400 ml. at the maximum, and the interval between two collections shall be at least 6 months.

A blood donor center is strictly prohibited from overcollecting or frequently collecting blood from a blood donor in violation of the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Article 10 A blood donor center shall, in order to protect the health of blood donors, collect blood strictly in compliance with the relevant operation procedures and regulations, having qualified medical workers to collect blood and destroying disposable instruments for blood collection after use.

A blood donor center shall, in accordance with the standard set by the administrative department of health under the State Council, guarantee the quality of the blood collected.

A blood donor center shall test the blood collected; blood that is not tested or fails to pass the test shall not be supplied to any medical institution.

Article 11 Donated blood shall only be used for clinical purposes and not for sale. No blood donor center or medical institution may sell donated blood to any blood plasma station or blood products manufacturer.

Article 12 Blood for clinical use must be packed, stored and transported in conformity with the sanitary standard and requirements set by the state.

Article 13 A medical institution shall check the blood for clinical use and may not use the blood that is not up to the standard set by the state for clinical purposes.

Article 14 A citizen who uses blood for clinical purposes shall only pay the expenses of blood collection, storage, separation and test; the specific standard rates shall be fixed by the administrative department of health under the State Council in conjunction with the competent pricing department under the State Council.

A blood donor who needs blood for clinical use shall be exempted from payment of the expenses specified in the preceding paragraph. The spouse or a lineal relative of a blood donor who needs blood for clinical use may be exempted from paying, or pay part of, the expenses specified in the preceding paragraph in accordance with the regulations of the relevant people’s government of the province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government.

Article 15 For the purpose of ensuring the supply of blood for citizens’ clinical first-aid treatment, the state encourages the patients who choose the date for operation to have their blood stored for their own use, with guidance in this respect provided; and encourages family members, relatives, friends, and colleagues of the patients as well as the community as a whole to donate blood in the form of mutual aid.

In order to meet an urgent need of blood, a medical institution may collect blood whenever necessary, provided that they guarantee safe collection and safe use of blood in accordance with the provisions of this Law.

Article 16 A medical institution shall make plans for the clinical use of blood, adhere to the principle of rational and scientific use, and may not waste blood or use it indiscriminately.

A medical institution shall vigorously practice transfusion of blood components according to actual medical need. The specific measures for the administration thereof shall be formulated by the administrative department of health under the State Council.

The state encourages research on and dissemination of new technologies for clinical use of blood.

Article 17 The people’s governments and the Red Cross societies at various levels shall award the entities and individuals that take an active part in donating blood or score outstanding achievements in the work of blood donation.

Article 18 Where an entity or individual commits any of the following acts, its or his act shall be banned by the administrative department of health under the local people’s government at or above the county level, with the illegal gains confiscated and a fine of not more than RMB 100,000 yuan imposed. If the act constitutes a crime, the entity or the individual shall be held for criminal responsibility according to law:

(1) collecting blood unlawfully;

(2) a blood donor center or medical institution selling donated blood; and

(3) unlawfully making arrangements for another person to sell blood.

Article 19 A blood donor center that collects blood in violation of relevant operation procedures and regulations shall be ordered to make rectification by the administrative department of health under the local people’s government at or above the county level. If any harm is thereby caused to the health of a blood donor, the blood donor center shall make compensation according to law, and the directly responsible persons in charge and other persons who are directly responsible for the violation shall be sanctioned according to law. If the violation constitutes a crime, the center and the relevant persons shall be held for criminal responsibility according to law.

Article 20 Whoever packs, stores or transports blood for clinical use at variance with the sanitary standard or requirements set by the state shall be ordered to make rectification, be given a warning, and may also be fined not more than RMB 10,000 yuan by the administrative department of health under the local people’s government at or above the county level.

Article 21 A blood donor center that, in violation of the provisions of this Law, provides any medical institution with blood that is not up to the standard set by the state shall be ordered to make rectification by the administrative department of health under the people’s government at or above the county level. If the circumstances are serious and diseases are transmitted through blood or there is great danger of such transmission, the blood donor center shall be ordered to make rectification within a time limit, and the directly responsible persons in charge and other persons who are directly responsible for the violation shall be given administrative sanctions according to law. If the violation constitutes a crime, the center and the relevant persons shall be held for criminal responsibility according to law.

Article 22 A medical worker of a medical institution who, in violation of the provisions of this Law, uses blood that is not up to the standard set by the state on a patient shall be ordered to make rectification by the administrative department of health under the local people’s government at or above the county level. If any harm is thereby caused to a patient’s health, he shall make compensation according to law, and the directly responsible  person in charge and other persons who are directly responsible for the violation shall be given administrative sanctions according to law. If the violation constitutes a crime, the medical worker shall be held for criminal responsibility according to law.

Article 23 An administrative department of health or any of its employees who neglects its or his duty in supervision over and administration of the work concerning blood donation or use of blood, thereby causing serious consequences, which constitutes a crime, shall be held for criminal responsibility according to law; and the department or employee shall be given administrative sanctions according to law if there is no crime committed.

Article 24 This Law shall enter into force as of October 1, 1998.