SINGAPORE: Following a months-long suspension due to its improper handling of cord blood units, Cordlife has been given permission to resume limited cord blood banking services.
From September 15, 2024 to January 13, 2025, the company may gather, test, process, and store up to 30 units of fresh cord blood per month.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) permitted Cordlife to resume operations in a “controlled manner” on Thursday, August 29, but stated that these limitations are in place to protect the interests of its clients. The ministry stated, “MOH’s notice is pending Cordlife’s written representations.”
The longest-running private cord blood bank in Singapore, Cordlife, was suspended for six months in December 2023 after it was revealed that seven of its storage tanks had temperatures above permissible levels. The roughly 2,200 cord blood units damaged in the first tank impacted at least 2,150 clients.
On June 15 of this year, the six-month suspension was extended for an additional three months for Cordlife to finish validating its new cord blood processing method.
According to the ministry, follow-up audits carried out by MOH in August revealed that Cordlife had fulfilled all the necessary conditions to start offering its cord blood banking services again.
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