title: Toward a more stable blood supply: charitable incentives, donation rates, and the experience of September 11.
abstract: Although excess blood collection has characterized U.S. national disasters, most dramatically in the case of September 11, periodic shortages of blood have recurred for decades. In response, I propose a new model of medical philanthropy, one that specifically uses charitable contributions to health care as blood donation incentives. I explain how the surge in blood donations following 9/11 was both transient and disaster-specific, failing to foster a greater continuing commitment to donate blood. This underscores the importance of considering blood donation incentives. I defend charitable incentives as an alternative to financial incentives, which I contend would further extend neoliberal market values into health care. I explain my model's potential appeal to private foundations or public-private partnerships as a means for expanding both the pool of blood donors and the prosocial benefit of each act of blood donation. Finally I link my analysis to the empirical literature on blood donation incentives.
authors: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland OH 44106, USA. rgs63@case.edu
authors: Reuben G
authors: RG
authors: Sass
mesh_terms: D001782:Blood Donors / Q000941:ethics* / Q000600:supply & distribution; D004190:Disasters; D005582:Foundations; D005653:Fund Raising; D006291:Health Policy / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D009042:Motivation / Q000941:ethics; D011634:Public Health; D055818:Public-Private Sector Partnerships; D047851:September 11 Terrorist Attacks; D014481:United States; D014838:Volunteers