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Rally planned today against paid blood donation facility
Posted: March 4, 2025
(March 3, 2025) By: DP Staff, Durham Post
Activist Durham residents, healthcare workers, labour leaders, and the Ontario Health Care Coalition plan to rally at the Grifols Centre in Whitby to protest today (Monday, March 3), the operation of a paid plasma facility.
Organizers outlined their concerns regarding the for-profit plasma collection:
- For-profit plasma collection creates a blood-for-money system.
- For-profit plasma collection exploits vulnerable populations.
- For-profit plasma collection does not guarantee self sufficiency of Canada’s blood plasma supply.
- For-profit plasma collection favours profits over ethics.
- For-profit plasma collection negatively impacts voluntary donor populations.
They further stated that the Voluntary Blood Donations Act bans payment (and receiving payment) for blood in Ontario.
The exemption allowing Canadian Blood Services to pay donors was meant for emergency circumstances; “not as a legal loophole to sell off Canada’s plasma donors to private companies”.
Speakers at the event include:
- JP Hornick, President of Ontario Public Service Employees Association (OPSEU/SEFPO)
- Erin Ariss, President of Ontario Nurses Association (ONA)
- Michael Hurley, President of The Canadian Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU)
- Natalie Mehra, Executive Director of the Ontario Health Coalition (OHC)
- A Doug Ford giant effigy
