Infected blood
It is estimated that about 3,000 people in Scotland were infected with hepatitis C through NHS blood or blood products in the 1970s through to 1991. Some were also infected with HIV in the early 1980s.
Infections also occurred on a huge scale in the rest of the UK and around the world. Scotland held a public inquiry - the Penrose Inquiry – and the final report was published on 25 March 2015.
Infected Blood Inquiry and interim compensation payments
In July 2017, the UK Government announced a UK-wide inquiry into infected blood. This Inquiry began in May 2018 and is being chaired by Sir Brian Langstaff.
On 29 July 2022, Sir Brian Langstaff adopted an interim Infected Blood Inquiry report, which recommended that an interim payment of £100,000 should be paid to all existing members of UK infected blood support schemes, including the Scottish Infected Blood Support Scheme (SIBSS), as well as to any new members who join the scheme until such time as any final compensation scheme is put in place. As a result, on behalf of the UK Government, payments were made to all SIBSS beneficiaries in October 2022.
On 20 May 2024, the Infected Blood Inquiry published its final report. Following its publication, the UK Government committed to making a further set of interim payments to living infected beneficiaries of the UK Infected Blood Support Schemes of £210,000. These payments were made to all SIBSS beneficiaries in June 2024.
On the same day, UK Government committed to making interim compensation payments of £100,000 to the estates of those deceased infected persons where no financial compensation had been paid to date. Applications for these payments opened on 24 October 2024. A link to the application forms can be found on the SIBSS website.
Progress on implementing recommendations made in the final report of the Infected Blood Inquiry can be found on the Infected Blood Inquiry Oversight and Assurance Group webpage.
Infected Blood Compensation Authority and Infected Blood Compensation Scheme
On 29 July 2023, Sir Brian Langstaff adopted a second interim Infected Blood Inquiry report, which made recommendations in relation to compensation for those infected and affected by infected blood.
The Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 established an arm’s length body, the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA) to administer the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme and required the UK Government to lay regulations to set out the scheme within three months of the Act coming into force.
The first set of regulations were laid on 24 August 2024 and established the infected blood compensation scheme for making payments in relation to eligible infected persons. The IBCA plans to make the first payments by the end of 2024.
Scottish Infected Blood Support Scheme
The scheme came into force on 1 April 2017 as a result of the Scottish Financial Review Group report on financial support. The scheme was set up to provide support and assistance for those infected with Hepatitis C, HIV, or both, as a result of NHS treatment. The scheme is managed by NHS National Services Scotland.
A consolidated scheme document is available for background only to show the Scheme with all changes made to April 2023. This summarises changes made by amending scheme documents over time:
- the original SIBSS scheme document came into force in April 2017
- in September 2017, some small changes to the original scheme were made, which included allowing long-term cohabiting partners of infected people who have died to qualify for annual payments in the same way as a widow, widower or civil partner
- in December 2018, the changes recommended in the clinical review report, an evidence-based review commissioned to examine the health impacts caused by chronic Hepatitis C infection, were implemented
- payments were increased in line with inflation (based on the CPI (Consumer Price Index) rate of inflation in September each year) were made in April 2020, April 2021, April 2022 , April 2023, April 2024 and April 2025 (April 2024 and 2025 updates are not included in the consolidated scheme document, above).
- following the UK Government announcement of 25 March 2021, a short statement on what this announcement meant for SIBSS beneficiaries was published and subsequently changes to the scheme document were brought in in June 2021. These changes aimed to bring greater parity on payment levels between the four infected blood support schemes in the UK
- in March 2023 the Principal Scheme was amended to allow for backdated payments for those transferring late from the Skipton Fund Limited
- in March 2025, the Principal Scheme was amended to close the Scottish Infected Blood Support Scheme to new applications from 31 March 2025, to allow “deregistration” of beneficiaries who have received their compensation under the Core route from the IBCA, and instate a mechanism by which any overpayments identified can be recovered
More information on SIBSS and psychological support
Information on eligibility and how to apply, as well as sources of additional support, is available on the Scottish Infected Blood Support Scheme section of the NHS National Services Scotland website.
If you are infected or affected by infected blood and feel you might benefit from psychological support, please contact the Scottish Infected Blood Psychology Service. They can provide support in person, by phone or online.