AGENCY:

Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION:

Notice of availability.

SUMMARY:

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or Agency) is announcing the availability of a final guidance titled “Recommendations for Reducing the Risk of Transfusion-Transmitted Hepatitis B Virus.” The guidance document provides blood establishments that collect blood and blood components, including Source Plasma, with FDA's recommendations for testing blood and blood components for hepatitis B virus (HBV) to reduce the risk of transfusion-transmitted HBV. The recommendations contained in the guidance apply to the collection of Whole Blood and blood components, including Source Plasma. The guidance announced in this notice finalizes the draft guidance titled “Recommendations for Testing Blood Donations for Hepatitis B Surface Antigen” (July 2025 Draft Guidance). The guidance also supersedes the documents titled “Recommendations for the Management of Donors and Units that are Initially Reactive for Hepatitis B Surface Antigen (HBsAg)” (December 1987 Memorandum), “FDA Recommendations Concerning Testing for Antibody to Hepatitis B Core Antigen (Anti-HBc)” (September 1991 Memorandum), “Adequate and Appropriate Donor Screening Tests for Hepatitis B; Hepatitis B Surface Antigen (HBsAg) Assays Used to Test Donors of Whole Blood and Blood Components, Including Source Plasma and Source Leukocytes” (November 2007 Final Guidance), “Requalification Method for Reentry of Blood Donors Deferred Because of Reactive Test Results for Antibody to Hepatitis B Core Antigen (Anti-HBc)” (May 2010 Final Guidance), “Requalification Method for Reentry of Donors Who Test Hepatitis B Surface Antigen (HBsAg) Positive Following a Recent Vaccination against Hepatitis B Virus Infection” (November 2011 Final Guidance), and “Use of Nucleic Acid Tests on Pooled and Individual Samples from Donors of Whole Blood and Blood Components, Including Source Plasma, to Reduce the Risk of Transmission of Hepatitis B Virus” (October 2012 Final Guidance). The guidance supersedes the recommendations specific to HBV in “Recommendations for the Quarantine and Disposition of Units from Prior Collections from Donors with Repeatedly Reactive Screening Tests for Hepatitis B Virus (HBV), Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) and Human T- Lymphotropic Virus Type I (HTLV-I)” (July 1996 Memorandum).

DATES:

The announcement of the guidance is published in the Federal Register on November 3, 2026.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit either electronic or written comments on Agency guidances at any time as follows:

Electronic Submissions

Submit electronic comments in the following way:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal:www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Comments submitted electronically, including attachments, to www.regulations.gov will be posted to the docket unchanged. Because your comment will be made public, you are solely responsible for ensuring that your comment does not include any confidential information that you or a third party may not wish to be posted, such as medical information, your or anyone else's Social Security number, or confidential business information, such as a manufacturing process. Please note that if you include your name, contact information, or other information that identifies you in the body of your comments, that information will be posted on www.regulations.gov.
• If you want to submit a comment with confidential information that you do not wish to be made available to the public, submit the comment as a written/paper submission and in the manner detailed (see “Written/Paper Submissions” and “Instructions”).

Written/Paper Submissions

Submit written/paper submissions as follows:

• Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier (for written/paper submissions): Dockets Management Staff (HFA-305), Food and Drug Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.
• For written/paper comments submitted to the Dockets Management Staff, FDA will post your comment, as well as any attachments, except for information submitted, marked and identified, as confidential, if submitted as detailed in “Instructions.”

Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket No. FDA-2024-D-5942 for “Recommendations for Reducing the Risk of Transfusion-Transmitted Hepatitis B Virus.” Received comments will be placed in the docket and, except for those submitted as “Confidential Submissions,” publicly viewable at www.regulations.gov or at the Dockets Management Staff between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, 240-402-7500.

• Confidential Submissions—To submit a comment with confidential information that you do not wish to be made publicly available, submit your comments only as a written/paper submission. You should submit two copies total. One copy will include the information you claim to be confidential with a heading or cover note that states “THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.” The Agency will review this copy, including the claimed confidential information, in its consideration of comments. The second copy, which will have the claimed confidential information redacted/blacked out, will be available for public viewing and posted onwww.regulations.gov. Submit both copies to the Dockets Management Staff. If you do not wish your name and contact information to be made publicly available, you can provide this information on the cover sheet and not in the body of your comments and you must identify this information as “confidential.” Any information marked as “confidential” will not be disclosed except in accordance with 21 CFR 10.20 and other applicable disclosure law. For more information about FDA's posting of comments to public dockets, see 80 FR 56469, September 18, 2015, or access the information at: www.govinfo.gov/​content/​pkg/​FR-2015-09-18/​pdf/​2015-23389.pdf.

Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or the electronic and written/paper comments received, go to www.regulations.gov and insert the docket number, found in brackets in the heading of this document, into the “Search” box and follow the prompts and/or go to the Dockets Management Staff, 5630 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852, 240-402-7500. ( printed page 69259)

You may submit comments on any guidance at any time (see 21 CFR 10.115(g)(5)).

Submit written requests for single copies of the guidance to the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER), Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 71, Rm. 3103, Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002. Send one self-addressed adhesive label to assist the office in processing your requests. The guidance may also be obtained by mail by calling CBER at 1-800-835-4709 or 240-402-8010. See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for electronic access to the draft guidance document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Tami Belouin, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, 240-402-7911.