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Wed 11 Nov 2002Blood bank to refuse donors who have lived in UKPeople who lived in the UK for a year or more when "mad cow disease" was at its height will no longer be allowed to donate blood under a strict new safety policy to be introduced early next year.The Irish Blood Transfusion Service (IBTS) has said that, because of a recent increase in donations, it is now in a position to implement the policy, aimed at reducing the risk of transmitting vCJD, the human form of BSE.