Blood units get costlier in State

The Health Department has revised prices of blood units and its components in all the 134 private blood banks in Karnataka. A Government Order issued recently says the revised rates will be implemented with immediate effect. While the rates have been revised from ₹700 to ₹950 for every unit of whole blood, the cost of packed blood cells has gone up from ₹600 to ₹850. Blood and blood components, including all tests, are free of cost for BPL card holders in both government and private hospitals. However, the cost of blood and blood components for non-BPL patients in the 66 National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) assisted government blood banks has been retained. A top official from the Karnataka State Blood Transfusion Council said that no blood bank or hospital would be allowed to charge patients in excess of the stipulated price. Shalini Rajneesh, Principal Secretary (Health and Family Welfare), said that charges for blood that has undergone Individual Donor Nucleic Acid Testing (ID-NAT), NAT (pooled), and ELISA (HIV, HCV, or HbsAg) should be collected from patients only if the tests are done. While Individual donor Nucleic Acid Testing will be done free in the 31 district hospital blood banks and Rotary TTK blood banks, the test will cost ₹1,100 for every sample tested from private blood banks. With patients struggling to get blood components, especially platelets and frozen plasma in rural areas, as there are not many blood component separation units there, the Health Department will soon start 40 new blood separation units. This will be helpful to patients, especially in the monsoon when there is usually a spurt in vector-borne diseases. Soon, HIV positive patients in the State will get blood and its components free of cost in both government and private blood banks. A Government Order in this regard will be issued shortly, said a top official in charge of the Karnataka State Blood Transfusion Council. As of now, those with Thalassemia, haemophilia and sickle cell anaemia are getting blood and its components free. “We will extend a similar facility to HIV patients,” the official said.