Stepping Up Regulation and Supervision of Cord Blood Bank Services

Ms Hany Soh asked the Coordinating Minister for Social Policies and Minister for Health whether the Ministry assesses there to be a need for greater regulation and supervision of cord blood bank services in view of the risk of irreversible damage in the event of lapses.

The Healthcare Services (Cord Blood Banking Service) regulations 2021 are set in line with international standards and aimed at assuring quality and safety of the cord blood units stored and suitability for transplant purposes. Under this regulatory framework, the Ministry of Health (MOH) conduct regular audits and inspections to ensure compliance with requirements for collection, handling, processing, storage and distribution of cord blood, and any areas of concern or suspected lapses will be investigated. In this case, Cordlife fell short of the standards, and its lapses were quickly surfaced and actions taken. It was how the regulatory framework was meant to work.

Cord blood banking is an elective, commercial service provided by the private sector. Contractual matters relating to storage and retrieval or compensation are private commercial arrangements between cord blood banks and their clients, outside of MOH's purview. MOH will continue to work closely with Cordlife to address their lapses and enhance their quality management system.