Immunotek plasma donation center opens in Jeffersonville

Brooke McAfee, The Evening News and the Tribune, Jeffersonville, Ind.
·2 min read

Mar. 10—JEFFERSONVILLE — A plasma donation center opened its doors this week in Jeffersonville.

Immunotek Bio Centers opened Tuesday at 1665 East 10th Street. The Jeffersonville location is Immunotek's 43rd donation center and the second in Indiana.

Donors go through an in-house screening, along with physical exams and medical history exams by medical professionals.

The plasma donations are different from a typical blood donation. The red blood cells from plasma donors go back into the donor, and only the plasma portion of the blood is collected.

This allows donors to donate up to twice a week or up to eight times a month, which is a more frequent basis than regular blood donations, according to Immunotek Director of Operations Kino Pearce.

Immunotek is a compensated donation center to provide financial incentives for donors, and it is providing up to 30 new jobs at the Jeffersonville center.

"For us, coming to this community is important, because we feel we can contribute not only with opportunities for jobs to people, but also with providing out-of-state money into the Jeffersonville, Indiana area," Pearce said.

Donations made in Jeffersonville will have a global impact, according to Pearce.

"The United States produces about 70% of the world's plasma supply, and so the products that are derived here in Jeffersonville will be distributed worldwide for recipients to receive in every part of the world," he said. "It's kind of cool to be part of that larger picture."

Michael Kerbel, center director at the Jeffersonville location, said Immunotek is "doing something small in Jeffersonville for a greater opportunity across the world."

Pearce said COVID-19 has made some people more hesitant to come in for donations.

"Right now in the industry, there's a huge demand for plasma, but due to COVID and some other things, the amount of supply we're seeing is reduced, and so there are patients out there, recipients, who are not having access to those products they so desperately need," Pearce said.

In a Monday news release, Immunotek CEO Jerome Parnell III described donating plasma as a "life-saving gift."

"Plasma is used by pharmaceutical companies to develop plasma protein therapies and vaccines for a myriad of immune disorders," he said in the news release. "Plasma is also being used to fight against COVID-19 and recent research shows promise for plasma-derived therapies to reduce or limit the effects from Alzheimer's and dementia.

"Plasma is also used in treatments for burn victims, those suffering with blood disorders, and cancer patients," he said.