Blood donation: altruism, ideology and a multimillion-dollar industry

Free blood, big business: donation under scrutiny

Donating blood is free for the recipient and the donor, but not for the industry that processes it. The controversy has erupted: donation centres, which should be neutral, find themselves at the heart of an ideological dispute that, according to some, is driving away conservative donors. Blood knows no colours, but the atmosphere, it seems, does.

The price of generosity

In Spain, donation is altruistic and unpaid. Yet the plasma extracted from that generosity ends up in medicines that pharmaceutical companies sell at laboratory prices. Grifols, one of the giants of the sector, makes millions from a product that citizens hand over without compensation. That asymmetry is causing friction: while some argue that charity is a virtue, others demand a regulated market where donors are paid according to supply and demand.

Market or charity?

Some argue that paying for blood encourages donation and removes the paternalism of campaigns. The opposing view points out that the Spanish system, based on volunteering, has guaranteed supply for decades. The clash is not only economic: it is also political. During the pandemic, it was pointed out that the unvaccinated could not enter a hospital, but could donate blood. A double standard that fuels distrust.

The final question has no single answer: if blood is a critical resource, can its collection be left in the hands of ideology? Meanwhile, the plasma business keeps growing and donors are becoming increasingly sceptical.