They are not selling blood. Whole blood is taken out, plasma is separated, and then the red blood cells are put back into the donor. We have to get plasma someplace. Without plasma a lot of people will die. Plasma donations and whole blood donations are not the same thing. I don’t care if the plasma donors, who are screened, get paid a few bucks for the time they spend laying on a bed with a needle in their arm. If you want to do it for free, go for it.
Agree. I’m an AML survivor. I needed many, many platelet transfusions (snd rbc’s) . It takes about 4 hours to donate. Much longer than a red blood donation. I’ve met several people who need HLA specific platelets. When their numbers are 3 and there are no bags available, they need to be hospitalized as a serious fall risk. Luckily when mine has dropped that low, I could get the transfusions immediately. But, they won’t transfuse till 11 and they were always saying how short they were. Another shortage is IVIG.
I’m relieved to read measures are in place to recruit donors.
Virgin Catholic schoolgirls could 1) charge double, and 2) fully fund their education via helping others with their blood donations. Mormons might be able to charge triple.
This is not for plasma transfusions... it’s for immunotherapy drugs. Would have to have a pharmaceutical engineer tell us about the risks.
These exotic immunotherapy cures? Scary to me, but prob amazing to those who need them.