The Irish Haemophilia Society (IHS) has said that its members are angry and dismayed at the decision of the Government not to proceed with legal action against international pharmaceutical companies arising from the manufacture of contaminated blood products, writes Martin Wall
IHS chief executive Brian O'Mahony said his group's members believed they had a clear commitment from the Government going back to 1998 to either establish an inquiry into the source of products contaminated with HIV or Hepatitis C or to bring a civil action against the pharmaceutical companies involved.
More than 220 haemophiliacs were infected with hepatitis C as a result of receiving contaminated blood products. More than 100 were infected with the HIV virus and to date 91 have died.
Mr O'Mahony said that four years ago a New York law firm offered to take a case on behalf of the State on a contingency basis.
He said that over recent times the Government had told the IHS it was considering its options. He said that members were deeply disappointed that in the end the Cabinet had decided neither to hold an inquiry nor to take legal action.
Mr O'Mahony said the Department of Health had yesterday refused to provide the legal advice on which the Cabinet had arrived at its decision. The Government had engaged lawyers in the US and in Ireland to consider the issue of suing the international pharmaceutical companies.
Mr O'Mahony said the IHS would now write directly to the Tánaiste and Minister for Health Mary Harney to ask her for the legal advice.
He said that the society wanted to know the basis for the Government's decision before deciding on its next move.
Mr O'Mahony said that as far back as 1998 the then minister for health Brian Cowen had given a clear indication that the tribunal of inquiry to be established by the Government would look at the source of the infection.
He said the Lindsay tribunal, when it was established, had heard evidence about a blood product manufactured by one particular company that had been inadequately heat-treated.
He said that as a result of this, one Irish child as well as a number of Canadians had subsequently died.
Mr O'Mahony said the tribunal decided not to pursue this issue. He said the Canadian government was currently taking a criminal prosecution against the company concerned arising from this incident.
It was obvious, he said, that the Canadian authorities were taking the death of their citizens more seriously than the Irish Government.