ImmunoTek Opens 80th Donation Center
By Sandy Santo
(Baton Rouge, LA), May 03, 2023 – ImmunoTek Bio Centers opened its 80th and newest ImmunoTek Plasma location in Baton Rouge on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. As the world’s largest independent blood and plasma donation center operator, ImmunoTek invites the Baton Rouge community to visit the state-of-the-art facility to learn more about plasma donations and how they can positively impact others.
Since launching in 2013, ImmunoTek Bio Centers has accepted more than six million paid donations from blood-plasma donors, providing much-needed plasma used to make plasma protein therapies and medicines for healthcare patients around the globe. These plasma-derived medicines treat immune disorders, rare diseases, burn victims, cancer patients, and various other illnesses. The company’s 80th center opening comes at a time when plasma donations are in great demand worldwide.
“Donating blood-plasma at a donation center like ImmunoTek Plasma is truly a life-saving gift to those who depend on plasma-derived medicines to live each day. We are proud to open our 80th center in the U.S. to benefit patients around the globe. ImmunoTek has more plasma centers under construction nationwide to increase our ability to provide plasma to help those who need it,” said Jerome Parnell III, CEO of ImmunoTek.
Because of advances in patient medicines and treatments, the need for plasma donations continues to rise. The new center in Baton Rouge will help meet the ever-growing need. Plasma is more than half of a human’s blood volume and is the protein-rich golden liquid portion of blood that remains after removing red and white blood cells. Plasma-based medications are created from the plasma patients depend on for their specific therapy. Treating just one patient for a year requires 130 – 1,200 plasma donations from healthy donors.
The United States provides 2/3 of the world’s plasma, and demand increases by 6% – 8% yearly. “We are excited to add Baton Rouge to the ImmunoTek family and to know that our donors are doing their part to help others. While we compensate donors for their time, the real gift is that donated plasma saves lives,” said Blair McKinney, Chief Operating Officer of ImmunoTek Bio Centers. “In addition to donor compensation, the new ImmunoTek donation center will create new jobs in Baton Rouge, and we anticipate making a $5 million economic impact yearly.”
To be eligible to donate plasma, in-house medical professionals conduct a medical screening, medical history review, and physical exam. Donating plasma is much like making a blood donation. A safe, sterile, automated process called plasmapheresis separates plasma from the blood and returns the remaining red blood cells to the donor. Donors can give plasma up to twice a week.
“ImmunoTek is proud to be an integral part of the Baton Rouge community where its employees and plasma donors live and work. Our team is excited about educating others about the importance of plasma donations. We look forward to positively impacting the local community and saving lives,” said Pamela Selvage, Center Manager of the new Baton Rouge center.
ImmunoTek Plasma’s new Baton Rouge location is at 6240 Florida Blvd and will operate Tuesday – Saturday. Walk-in donors are welcome for their first donation; subsequent donations are only by appointment. If you need more information or want to make an appointment, call the center at 225-208-0219 or visit www.immunotek.com.
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ABOUT IMMUNOTEK PLASMA
Operated by ImmunoTek Bio Centers LLC, ImmunoTek Plasma provides a chance for plasma donors to positively impact the lives of patients who rely on plasma-based therapies while being compensated for their time. We proudly operate state-of-the-art plasma collection facilities staffed with friendly plasma professionals committed to safety and quality.
ABOUT IMMUNOTEK BIO CENTERS, LLC
ImmunoTek Bio Centers LLC is the world’s largest and fastest-growing independent plasma collection center operator. ImmunoTek is a global leader in developing a reliable plasma supply chain for international biotech companies and partnering with organizations for ancillary projects related to blood-plasma collection. Since its inception in 2013, ImmunoTek has built and operated more than 70 plasma collection centers, most of which have achieved or are in the process of attaining U.S. FDA licensure and European certification. ImmunoTek currently has centers operating in 20 states, with 20 additional centers under development and planning underway for more than 40 additional sites over the next three years. For more information, visit ImmunoTek.com.