{
  "id": 8570094,
  "title": "Blood transfusion: Follow your heart, Jehovah’s Witness tells members",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/20/blood-transfusion-follow-your-heart-jehovahs-witness-tells-members-8570094",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-20T00:50:45.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Punch",
    "slug": "punch",
    "url": "https://punchng.com/blood-transfusion-follow-your-heart-jehovahs-witness-tells-members/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Jehovah’s Witnesses have changed their policy on blood transfusions, allowing members to make individual decisions based on personal conscience. They can now choose whether to accept red blood cells, white blood cells, plasma, or platelets from another person's blood.\n\nThe Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses announced this change, according to the Daily Post Nigeria, in a statement from its World Headquarters in Warwick, New York. The organisation emphasised that its longstanding position against whole-blood transfusions remains unchanged.\n\nMembers must also decide for themselves whether to donate blood components for another person's medical treatment. According to Paul Gillies, international spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses, the decision regarding blood components is a matter of individual conscience.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 5,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Punch Nigeria",
        "title": "Jehovah’s Witnesses announce adjustment to blood transfusion policy",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/19/jehovahs-witnesses-announce-adjustment-to-blood-transfusion-policy",
        "published": "2026-09-19T11:08:41.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Daily Post Nigeria",
        "title": "Jehovah’s Witnesses make major U-turn on blood transfusion policy",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/19/jehovahs-witnesses-make-major-u-turn-on-blood-transfusion-policy",
        "published": "2026-09-19T13:41:48.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Premium Times",
        "title": "Blood Transfusion: Jehovah’s Witnesses ease restrictions after eight decades",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/19/blood-transfusion-jehovahs-witnesses-ease-restrictions-after-eight",
        "published": "2026-09-19T17:51:33.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "This Day",
        "title": "Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Governing Board Announces Adjustment to Blood Transfusion Policy",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/20/jehovahs-witnesses-governing-board-announces-adjustment-to-blood",
        "published": "2026-09-20T01:16:39.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}