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Florida Blood Center Working On Experimental Coronavirus Treatment

Convalescent plasma machine at OneBlood in Orlando
John Garity/OneBlood
Convalescent plasma machine at OneBlood in Orlando
Convalescent plasma machine at OneBlood in Orlando
Credit John Garity/OneBlood
Convalescent plasma machine at OneBlood in Orlando

A not-for-profit blood center is working with the Florida Department of Health to find people who’ve recovered from COVID-19.

Their plasma may be able to help patients.

"The treatment is called COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma," says Susan Forbes with OneBlood, a not-for-profit blood center serving Florida and surrounding states. "It’s an experimental treatment that the FDA has given emergency permission to be used in critically ill patients with the coronavirus.”Listen as OneBlood's Susan Forbes explains the experimental plasma treatment for COVID-19.

Once donors have been identified, they’ll go to OneBlood to donate plasma, which will then be offered to hospitals to treat severely ill patients.

“People who recover from coronavirus infection have developed antibodies to the virus, and those antibodies remain in the plasma portion of their blood," Forbes says. "By transfusing the plasma that contains the antibodies into a person who’s still fighting the virus, it can provide a boost to the patient’s immune system and help them recover.”

Plasma makes up about 55 percent of human blood. Donors must meet all the usual screening criteria for blood donations as well as additional criteria provided by the FDA.

This is among several experimental treatments in the works for COVID-19.

Copyright 2020 WFSU

Gina Jordan reports from Tallahassee for WUSF and WLRN about how state policy affects your life.
Gina Jordan
Gina Jordan is the host of Morning Edition for WFSU News. Gina is a Tallahassee native and graduate of Florida State University. She spent 15 years working in news/talk and country radio in Orlando before becoming a reporter and All Things Considered host for WFSU in 2008. She left after a few years to spend more time with her son, working part-time as the capital reporter/producer for WLRN Public Media in Miami and as a drama teacher at Young Actors Theatre. She also blogged and reported for StateImpact Florida, an NPR education project, and produced podcasts and articles for AVISIAN Publishing. Gina has won awards for features, breaking news coverage, and newscasts from contests including the Associated Press, Green Eyeshade, and Murrow Awards. Gina is on the Florida Associated Press Broadcasters Board of Directors. Gina is thrilled to be back at WFSU! In her free time, she likes to read, travel, and watch her son play football. Follow Gina Jordan on Twitter: @hearyourthought