Private Umbilical Cord Blood Banks Under Scrutiny for Sub-Par Practices

By Amy Orciari Herman

The "loosely regulated cord-blood-banking business" came under scrutiny in Saturday's Wall Street Journal. The paper's analysis of government inspections and lawsuits found "dirty storage conditions, leaky blood samples and firms going out of business."

There are roughly three dozen private umbilical cord blood banks in the U.S., the WSJ reports, and they usually charge parents about $2000 up front to store their newborn's cord blood, plus over $100 annually in fees. But handling and storage are far from perfect. One researcher noted that of 2000 samples she received from private banks, several hundred had to be rejected because they weren't sterile, hadn't been tested appropriately, or had too few cells to be useful.

The FDA doesn't have "a particular goal or statutory requirement" for private banks, an agency official told the WSJ, though the facilities are supposed to follow rules for safe handling.

One prominent pediatrician said: "I encourage families to use that money that you would use for private banking for a good stroller or car seat."