Blood is sold by blood donation organizations. That does not mean that those organizations are making a profit off of it. It’s just to cover the costs of collecting it. However, some organizations, like American Red Cross, are going to have a higher overhead and so the blood will cost more coming from such organizations than if you donate at a hospital with a blood donor center. Most such hospitals are not self-supportive in respect to the availability of blood. Also, that ensures that the blood is there when it is needed.

The number of questions will also vary depending on the organization. Some are stricter than others about who they consider to be eligible. Go with the ones that are stricter. It’s for a good reason, patient and donor safety. The goal is not to just take anyone’s blood regardless of whether it could hurt the donor or a patient. If they have more questions or tougher eligibility requirements, they’re probably even safer. Additionally, most large hospitals will have an ICU for babies. Babies can not use Red Cross blood due to a necessary preservative. The blood has to be donated to the hospital and designated for the babies.

The MSM category of ineligibility, a man who has had sex with another man, is the highest risk group for HIV. The fact that you are permanently deferred from donating if you fall into this category is what is most absurd, I think. Many eligibility requirements like this are set down by the FDA and blood donor centers have no control over it. They just have to abide by it.

Some centers do require an SSN to donate. Some do not. All will require a unique personal identifier. Also regulated by the FDA. Please do not let that stop you from saving someone’s life.

Finally, 5% of the U.S. population donates blood. 35% are eligible to donate blood. 33% will need blood at one time or another. A patient needing a blood transfusion may require as many as 100 units of blood in a single surgery.

My mom had leukemia and sincerely appreciated all of those people who took the time to donate blood to extend her life.

I blogged about this on Qvisory and linked to this article. Thanks for covering this Michael!

They really ought to improve their screening process.

Otherwise, I think it is a good idea. It probably would be better to also have people tested for bone marrow so they can donate for people with leukemia. Would be really nice I think since leukemia kills a lot of people each year unnecessarily.

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“Does the Red Cross sell your frozen plasma?

………..Yes. All the centers that supply blood for transfusions—whether they’re part of the American Red Cross or not—sell their products to cover operating expenses……………..All blood suppliers are nonprofits, and the prices they charge follow the cost of production. Personnel costs make up half the price hospitals pay “at the pump”—labor can be very expensive, since staffers must be brought on to recruit donors, collect their blood, and then process it and test it for contamination…………….The exact price of a unit of blood varies from place to place. As a rule, coastal blood is more expensive than the stuff in the heartland. (California has the biggest tags.) That’s because the higher cost of living translates into higher labor costs, which get passed on to the hospitals. It’s also more expensive to rent office space and secure advertising time in large urban areas……………….The same unit of red blood cells might cost $220 in Los Angeles but only $150 in Des Moines………………..”

http://www.slat....com/id/2149359

I do think that the app is a great idea though…

I told my hospital (Sweden) last time I visited that the communication through facebook would be a good idea. They didn´t even knew what facebook was… :/

http://www.fabi...t-get-facebook/