The wife of a man infected in the tainted blood scandal has called for ‘urgent’ compensation for victims after her husband spent his ‘last Christmas’ still waiting for justice.
Wendy Stubbs said it is already too late for the ‘love of her life’ Stephen, 63, who is rapidly deteriorating as a result of contracting hepatitis C from blood products in the 1980s.
The grandfather has an aggressive form of Alzheimer’s disease caused by his infection and is living out his days in a care home unable to talk, feed or dress himself, or recognise his loved ones.
Mrs Stubbs, 61, said tearfully: ‘For Stephen it is already too late, he hasn’t got a clue what is going on. Christmas is a happy time for families but he doesn’t even know who I am. There were thousands of people who had been infected. Stephen is the only one left, but justice has yet to be done.
Wendy Stubbs said it is already too late for the ‘love of her life’ Stephen, 63, who is rapidly deteriorating as a result of contracting hepatitis C from blood products in the 1980s
‘The Government needs to do something and urgently before they’ve all been wiped out.’
About 30,000 Britons – many haemophiliacs like Mr Stubbs – contracted HIV and/or hepatitis C in the 1970s and 1980s after being treated by the NHS with cheap, tainted US blood products. Some 3,000 have already died in what has been described as the ‘worst treatment disaster in NHS history’.
Victims never received compensation because the government never accepted liability. They were instead given small amounts of support from inept programs.
In March, Penny Mordaunt, then the Paymaster General of Penny Mordaunt, stated that an independent reviewer would evaluate the extent of compensation prior to the Infected Blood Inquiry ending next autumn.
But Mrs Stubbs, a retired nurse from Eccleshill, Bradford, said that it will be too late for victims like her husband – whom she fears won’t live to see another Christmas.
‘Stephen is in the latter stages of Alzheimer’s where you start losing your functions,’ she said. ‘He’s deteriorating rapidly.’
They had high expectations for retirement. The couple planned to take cruises and spend weekends with their grandchildren. ‘We had worked very hard but it has been snatched away from us,’ she said. ‘I’m losing him bit by bit when we should be enjoying our retirement.’
In March, Penny Mordaunt (the former Paymaster General) stated that an independent reviewer would be appointed to examine the compensation available before the Infected Blood Inquiry closes next autumn.
Mrs Stubbs claimed that victims, such as her husband, could have lived more comfortably if justice hadn’t been delayed for 40 years.
He was looking for compensation to not only secure his future but also for himself.
‘He said, “It’s cruel, here I am in a life-limiting disease that was given to me through no fault of my own,”’ she added.
Infected, Stubbs had received Factor VIII, a clotting agent at Bradford Royal Infirmary during the 1980s. He began experiencing confusion and memory problems in 2016 after his treatment failed.
‘The doctors stated that it was probable and likely that Stephen’s form of aggressive Alzheimer’s was a result of the hepatitis infection,’ Mrs Stubbs recalled.
In 2019, his condition had worsened to the point that he was forced from work as a technician sterilizing surgical equipment. Although Mrs Stubbs was there to care for him, his behavior began to become difficult and he was forced into a home.
‘‘It was horrible to see the change in this person who was always a very calm, composed and tidy man,’ she said. ‘He was very loving but now he’s always got this terrified look on his face… It breaks my heart.’
In the US, pharmaceutical companies paid millions of dollars to victims and their families, while victims in Ireland have received more than one billion euros (£846million) in compensation.
In the UK, however, it took four decades to establish a credible public inquiry. To this day, no apology has been offered or any compensation has been paid. Kate Burt, chief executive of the Haemophilia Society, said: ‘Time is running out for families affected to get the justice and compensation they deserve.’