Donor Compensation
Worldwide, the total demand for plasma by fractionators (pharmaceutical companies that manufacture human plasma into plasma protein therapies) exceeds 20 million liters. The amount collected by plasmapheresis in government regulated plasma collection centers in the U.S. is roughly 11 million liters, which is collected from more than 15 million donations. The remaining liters of plasma used to manufacture plasma protein therapies are recovered from whole blood donations made at hospital, community or Red Cross blood banks.
Donating plasma takes time and is a commitment. To guarantee a safe and adequate supply of plasma, the industry developed a system of donor compensation that recognizes the substantial commitment of personal time and effort required from donors. If the industry did not compensate donors, manufacturers would not be able to obtain the amount of plasma needed to produce the life-saving therapies relied upon by patients worldwide; therefore, it is a matter of necessity that plasma donors are compensated. Each plasma collection facility sets its own compensation structure.