A Grifols Plasma Donation Centre on Taylor Ave. in Winnipeg.Shannon VanRaes/The Globe and Mail
Federal and provincial health probes into the deaths of two people following plasma donations at for-profit Grifols collection centres in Winnipeg found no link between the donation process and the fatalities, prompting at least one advocate to call for an inquiry.
Health Canada spokesperson Mark Johnson said the federal regulator’s assessments of the fatal adverse reactions from October and January are “now complete” and that “no linkage has been established between the plasma donation process and the deaths of the donors in question.” He directed further queries to Manitoba’s chief medical examiner.
On Thursday, Stephanie Holfeld, executive director of the Manitoba examiner’s office, said her department agreed with Health Canada’s findings.
Ms. Holfeld’s office completed an autopsy for one of the deaths, declining to identify the individual.
“The second case was thoroughly investigated and determined not to require an autopsy based on the established cause and manner of death,” she wrote in an e-mailed statement.
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In an interview, Manitoba Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said they accept the examiners’ independent findings and the decision not to conduct a second autopsy. Results of the completed autopsy were not shared directly with Mx. Asagwara.
“These are tragic deaths,” Mx. Asagwara said. “Those families deserved answers to their questions. Manitobans deserved answers to their questions about whether or not there was a connection between the donation of plasma and their deaths.”
It would be “irresponsible” and “problematic” to suggest that the examiners are holding back information, the minister said. Decisions about what can be shared publicly requires protecting the confidentiality of those involved and “the highest degree of standards,” they said.
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Although Mx. Asagwara had previously said that Manitoba was mulling a ban on the practice of collecting plasma for pay, as is the case in British Columbia and Quebec, they told The Globe that their government will now focus on other measures instead. That might include educating Manitobans about the safety of plasma donations, so they can make informed decisions about what the minister described as “a gift of life.”
Spanish pharmaceutical company Grifols, which is Canada’s only major commercial collector of plasma, has come under significant scrutiny – including by MPs in Ottawa – after Health Canada last month publicly confirmed the deaths in Winnipeg.
Health Canada said it was notified by Grifols about the deaths on Oct. 25, 2025, and Jan. 30, 2026, each at two separate sites in south-central Winnipeg and next to the University of Manitoba, respectively.
Asked whether there had been any other similar incidents across the country in the last 10 years, Health Canada told The Globe that only one other death was reported in Winnipeg on June 4, 2018. That plasma-related death occurred at the University of Manitoba collection site, which at the time was operated by Prometic Plasma Resources, before it was acquired by Grifols in 2022.
The regulator declined to identify any of the deceased in the three cases.
Friends and family, however, have identified one of the deceased as Rodiyat Alabede, a 22-year-old international student at the University of Winnipeg, who was rushed to hospital and died shortly after donating plasma.
Kat Lanteigne, a Toronto-based advocate for publicly managed blood systems, who has opposed Grifols’ expansion in the country, received a letter from Health Canada that provided a little more information about its investigation into the Winnipeg deaths.
Signed by Celia Lourenco, Canada’s associate assistant deputy minister of health, the letter states that Grifols had quarantined the machines that were used in the donations involved with the two recent deaths.
The letter, obtained by The Globe, suggests that Health Canada inspectors did not themselves examine the machines, but relied on assessments from the manufacturer and Grifols, which operated them.
“The department reviewed relevant records, including the manufacturer’s assessment of the devices used during the plasma collection at these sites, and deemed no action was required and the department therefore did not seize the plasmapheresis machines at the collection centres in Winnipeg,” Dr. Lourenco wrote in the three-page letter.
Last week, Health Canada imposed new conditions on Grifols’ operating licences, stating that there were 'recurring, systemic deficiencies' at the company’s sites.Shannon VanRaes/The Globe and Mail
Mr. Johnson said Health Canada has “no further comment beyond what is contained in the letter.”
Ms. Lanteigne, the advocate, said a formal inquiry must be launched by Ottawa into the operations of Grifols and the donors’ deaths.
“What has become clear is that a thorough forensic investigation into the deaths of plasma donors in Winnipeg was not conducted by Health Canada,” she said in an e-mail.
“The urgent issue of high frequency plasma donation and its adverse health impacts on donors is beyond troubling.”
Last week, Health Canada imposed new conditions on Grifols’ operating licences, stating that there were “recurring, systemic deficiencies” at the company’s sites. Of its 17 collection centres in Canada, 16 must now reduce the number of appointments per hour, better supervise new staff and improve donor records, the regulator said.
A straw-coloured fluid found in blood, plasma is most often used for manufacturing medicines, such as for patients with immune deficiencies.
Donating plasma can take up to 90 minutes, as blood is taken, then separated into its parts, before being returned to the donor as replacement fluid with parts that aren’t plasma.
At Grifols, donors are allowed to give plasma twice a week if they pass health screenings, and are paid between $30 and $100 per donation, depending on the volume and frequency. They are also paid $50 bonuses for donating 10 times within six weeks and $100 bonuses for donating 100 times within a calendar year.