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Senate advances bill allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to donate blood with parental consent
Summary
Senate sponsors said House Bill 64 would let 16- and 17-year-olds donate blood with parental consent to increase the donor pool; the bill passed the Senate second-reading vote and was placed on the third-reading calendar with unanimous recorded support in this sequence.
Senator Jones presented House Bill 64 to allow a minor who is at least 16 years old to donate blood to a voluntary, noncompensatory blood donation program if a parent or legal guardian consents. The sponsor framed the measure as a response to growing demand for blood products and low participation among eligible young people, saying Utah needs new ways "to attract healthy donors at a younger age who will hopefully make giving blood a lifelong habit."
Senator Jones noted that 38 percent of the general population is eligible to give blood but only about 8 percent actually do, and that allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to donate with parental consent could grow the supply "between 10-20%" if participation increases as expected. Senators asked clarifying questions about current law and confirmed that, under existing rules, nobody under 18 could give blood without this change. No significant floor opposition was recorded during the discussion.
The Senate recorded a roll-call indicating that House Bill 64 received 23 yea votes, 0 nay votes and 6 absent and that the bill would be placed at the bottom of the third reading calendar.
Provenance: Sponsor remarks and the roll-call tally are taken from the transcript introduction of HB64 and the subsequent roll-call recorded in the session.
