FAQ

We do not have walk-in plasma donation appointments. All plasma donations are by appointment only for individuals who have been screened through a simple blood test and who have qualified for our plasma research program.

• All of our donors go through a screening process before they are accepted into one of PlasmaLab’s medical research programs in Everett WA.
• To become a donor, you must experience one of the following medical conditions:
  • Difficult allergies to food/spices, grass pollen, tree pollen, weed pollen, cannabis, dust mites, mold, latex, animals, insect stings/bites, medications
  • An antibody-mediated autoimmune disease (celiac, Graves’ disease, Hashimoto’s disease, mixed connective tissue disorder, polymyositis, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, Sjogren’s syndrome, systemic lupus erythamatosus)
  • Clinically diagnosed eczema in the form of atopic dermatitis
  • Recent clinical diagnosis of certain viral/bacterial diseases
  • Confirmed red blood cell antibody diagnosis (anti-Wra, anti-Fyb, anti-Fya, anti-C, anti-E, anti-Kell, anti-K (Cellano), anti-Luca, anti-Dia)
• If you experience one or more of the above conditions and would like to schedule a 30-minute screening appointment at our office in Everett WA, please fill out our online potential donor form or call 425-258-3653.
  • You will determine if you meet FDA standards for plasma donation
  • You will fill out a health questionnaire regarding your medical condition
  • You will take part in a simple blood test to determine if the antibody levels your body produces in response to your medical condition are at a level needed for medical and/or diagnostic research
  • In approximately 2 to 4 weeks, we will be in contact to let you know if you qualified for our research program
  • If you qualify, we will let you know how many donations you have been requested to make and we will schedule your first plasma donation appointment
  • If you do not qualify, we will keep your information stored in our secure, HIPAA-compliant database and contact you if a researcher requests plasma that fits your antibody profile
• PlasmaLab has one office in Everett WA. We do not have offices in other locations and are not associated with other blood/plasma donation centers or medical offices.

• Screening appointments are scheduled Monday through Thursday from 8 am to 3:30 pm.
• Screening appointments are scheduled on Fridays from 8 am to 11:30 am.
• Walk-in screening appointments are available, but you may experience a waiting period before a medical technician can see you.
• All screening appointments are at our office in Everett WA.
• To schedule a screening appointment, fill out our online potential donor form or call 425-258-3653.

No. PlasmaLab will never charge you or your insurance company for your office visit or the lab tests we perform to determine your eligibility for our medical research programs.

• Read our FDA and PlasmaLab standards/list of exclusions and confirm that you meet the guidelines.
• Eat healthy iron-rich and protein-rich foods for three days before your screening appointment.
• Avoid fatty foods for three days before your appointment – too much fat in your blood will affect your blood tests.
• Come hydrated and avoid caffeine for a few hours before your appointment as it affects your veins.
• Bring you state-issued photo ID and proof of address.
• If you have allergy test results, please bring them to your screening appointment.
• Note: potential donors for our autoimmune, red blood cell antibody, viral disease, and bacterial disease programs are asked to provide clinical test results before a screening appointment is scheduled.

• Medicines you are taking or have taken
• Your risk for infectious diseases that can be transmitted by blood – especially syphilis, HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C
• Review of FDA and PlasmaLab standards/list of exclusions
• What states/countries you’ve lived in or visited
• Date of clinical diagnosis of your medical condition
• Allergy Survey: age you began experiencing allergies, allergens you have an allergic response to, symptoms, months/seasons you experience symptoms, allergy relief medications you take, details about allergy shots and immunotherapy

• Hematocrit
• Total Serum Protein (SPE)
• IgE Antibody Blood Test (for allergies specified in your Allergy Survey)
• Antibody Test (specific to autoimmune, viral, or bacterial condition)

No, we do not compensate screening appointments and are grateful for your generosity of time. Please keep in mind that the blood tests we perform to determine your eligibility are quite costly. You may pick up your Allergy IgE Antibody Blood Test results at our Everett office once they are available. Please request to fill out a mandatory HIPAA release form at your screening appointment in order to pick up your IgE test results once they are available.

This screening appointment and your willingness to donate plasma, combined with our allergy testing and access to allergy test results, is a friendly handshake of agreement that you will participate in our medical research program should you qualify and that we will pay you for each successful plasma donation in a timely manner.

• We will contact you 3 to 4 weeks after your screening appointment to let you know if you’ve been accepted into our program. 
• If you qualify, we’ll schedule your first plasma donation and let you know how many plasma donations you’ve been requested to make.
• If you don’t qualify at this time, we’ll keep your information in our secure database. Should a research group need plasma from someone with your antibody profile, we’ll be in touch with you to schedule one or more plasma donations.

• The number of donations is determined by our affiliate research groups.
• You may be asked to donate plasma at various times throughout the year; some of our donors have participated in our program for more than 20 years.
• You may donate twice in a seven-day period with at least 48 hours in between donations.
• Your information is stored in our secure, HIPAA-compliant database. Should a research group need plasma from someone with your antibody profile, we’ll be in touch with you to schedule one or more plasma donations.
• We work with diagnostic, regulatory, academic, biomedical, and research facilities in more than 30 countries, including the University of Washington in Washington State.

• Allergy Research Program: $185 per completed plasma donation
• Autoimmune Research Program: $185 per completed plasma donation
• Eczema/Atopic Dermatitis Research Program: $185 per completed plasma donation
• Viral/Bacterial Disease Research Program: $185 per completed plasma donation
• Diagnosed Rare Antibody Research Program: $185 per completed plasma donation
• No Medication Program: $50 per completed plasma donation

• After your first donation, your plasma will undergo infectious disease testing (HIV, hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C (HCV), and syphilis) per FDA standards. This typically takes two weeks. Once we have approval of your test results, we will mail a check to you for $185.
• If you are asked for additional plasma donations, your $185 check payment will be mailed out 2 to 4 business days after your successful plasma donation.

A completed plasma donation is a successful donation of 690 ml to 880 ml of plasma based on the donor’s weight.

• If you would like to pick up a copy of your IgE Antibody Blood Test results at our office in Everett, please request to fill out a mandatory HIPAA release form at your screening appointment.
• Test results are typically received 2 to 4 weeks after your screening appointment.

About 55 percent of your blood is comprised of plasma, a straw-colored liquid which transports water, salts, enzymes, antibodies, clotting factors, and other vital proteins throughout your body.

Plasma can be separated from the red blood cell, white blood cell, and platelet components of your blood through a process called automated plasmapheresis.

Individuals with certain medical conditions, such as allergies, may have unique antibodies in their plasma associated with their condition. These antibodies are used in medical research and diagnostic procedures.

• To protect patients and staff, your blood is tested for several infectious diseases, including hepatitis, HIV, and syphilis.
• If your source plasma tests positive for infectious disease, it will not be used for medical research purposes or any other purposes.
• You will be notified if, for any reason, you cannot donate plasma due to infectious disease. Secure medical records will be maintained indicating the reason for the deferral and the deferral time period.

• You and a member of our medical staff will review the FDA and PlasmaLab standards/list of exclusions, your health travel, risk of infectious diseases, and your general health.
• A member of our medical staff will check your blood pressure, temperature, pulse, hematocrit, and serum protein. You may also be asked for a urine sample.
• If you meet the FDA and PlasmaLab standards and your vital signs, hematocrit level, serum protein level, and urinalysis are within standard ranges, you will begin your plasma donation through automated plasmapheresis in our comfortable donor lounge.

Yes, you may be temporarily or permanently deferred from our plasma donation program if your hematocrit and/or serum protein levels are out of range.

Healthy food choices are important to maintaining healthy hematocrit and serum protein levels. Iron-rich foods such as tuna, fish, beef, iron-fortified hot and cold cereals, pinto beans, vegetables, raisins, dried apricots, and molasses can help you maintain a healthy hematocrit level. Lean animal proteins, fish, and eggs are all complete proteins that benefit your serum protein health. Seeds, nuts, lentils, beans, oats, brown rice, quinoa, corn, guava, spirulina, and soy are also protein-rich.

For males, the hematocrit level needs to be 39% or greater and the total serum protein level needs to be between 6.0gm and 9.0gm.

For females, the hematocrit level needs to be 38% or greater and the total serum protein level needs to be between 6.0gm and 9.0gm. Blood loss during menstruation may affect hematocrit levels; we advise scheduling plasma donations a few days after monthly menstruation is complete in order for your body to increase its iron load.

• Plasma donation appointments are scheduled Monday through Thursday, with time slots available from 7:30 am to 3 pm. (Note: first-time donors will not be scheduled in the 3 pm time slot.)
• Plasma donation appointments are scheduled for Fridays, with time slots available at 8 am and 10 am.
• We do not have weekend appointments or evening appointments.
• We are closed on the following holidays: New Year’s Day, President’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, day after Thanksgiving, Christmas.
• To schedule your plasma donation appointment, please call 425-258-3653.

Once accepted into one of our research programs, your first plasma donation appointment is scheduled for 2 hours. If subsequent plasma donation appointments are requested, they are scheduled for 90 minutes. We ask that you arrive 10 minutes before your appointment start time.

Please arrive 10 minutes early for your plasma donation appointment. We do our best to keep our appointments timely so you won’t have a long wait.

We are a medical office and rely on each donor’s commitment to attending scheduled appointments in a timely manner. When necessary, please inform us of a need to reschedule an appointment 48 hours in advance. PlasmaLab may choose not to collect plasma from individuals who repeatedly cancel appointments with little or no notice.

• Read our FDA and PlasmaLab standards/list of exclusions and confirm that you meet the guidelines.
• Eat healthy iron-rich and protein-rich foods for three days before your donation appointment.
• Eat healthy, balanced, “sturdy” meals on the day of your appointment. 
• Avoid fatty foods for three days before your appointment – too much fat in your blood may affect your ability to donate plasma.
• Come hydrated and avoid caffeine for a few hours before your appointment as it affects your veins.
• Bring you state-issued photo ID and proof of address to your first appointment. If your address changes, please bring an updated proof of address and present it to our receptionist before your appointment begins.
• Do not donate whole blood for at least 8 weeks before your plasma donation at PlasmaLab.
• Do not donate plasma at another facility for at least 7 days before your plasma donation at PlasmaLab.
• Do NOT donate plasma if you have the following signs and symptoms:

• • Enlargement of lymph glands for more than one month
  • Night sweats or unexplained fevers greater than 100.5°F for more than 10 days
  • Unexplained weight loss (greater than 10 pounds in less than 2 months)
  • Persistent cough or shortness of breath
  • White spot(s) or unusual blemishes in the mouth
  • Persistent diarrhea
  • Unexplained purplish or blue spot (Kaposi’s Sarcoma)

Automated plasmapheresis is a donation procedure in which plasma is separated from whole blood. The plasma, straw-colored in appearance, is collected while the rest of the blood (including red blood cells and white blood cells) is returned to the donor.

During plasmapheresis, whole blood taken from your arm is drawn by the automated machine into a centrifuge that spins. This spinning action separates the plasma from the red and white blood cells. The plasma is collected in a bottle and the uncollected blood components are returned to your body.

Sodium citrate is delivered through the venipuncture site during the plasmapheresis process to prevent red blood cells from coagulating.

At the end of the plasmapheresis procedure, 500 ml of saline is delivered through the venipuncture site to compensate for the donated plasma.

Depending on your hydration level, plasmapheresis typically takes 45 to 60 minutes.

Your body replaces plasma within two days. FDA requirements allow you to donate plasma no more than once in 48 hours and twice in a seven-day period.

With any medical program of this type, there are risks of adverse reaction and/or injury during or after plasmapheresis. These risks are rare. Thousands of individuals around the world donate plasma safely each day.

Possible reactions:

• Discomfort such as pain or itching at the infusion site
• A blood clot or a hematoma (a leakage of fluids or blood into the surrounding tissue which may result in bruising or reddish discoloration) may occur at the venipuncture site
• Infection of the skin, surrounding tissue, or vein; temporary rash where the skin antiseptics are applied; scar development at the venipuncture site
• Dizziness; nausea; vomiting; convulsions related to change in blood volume
• Vasovagal reaction (fainting)
• Rare: allergic reactions such as flushing, hives, abdominal cramps, difficulty breathing, chest pain, and/or bronchospasm (asthma) which may possibly be life threatening
• Each autopheresis instrument is equipped with air detectors to prevent air embolism; there is still the remote potential for an air embolism, with severe consequences including death
• Sodium citrate is used as a blood anticoagulant; thus, there is a possibility that you may experience tingling of the fingers, hand, and/or mouth. You may also experience leg cramps. If any of these occur, notify a technician immediately. Appropriate treatment will be administered as needed and you may be referred to a local medical facility for treatment
• The plasmapheresis procedure is widely used to obtain human plasma. The incidence of serious adverse reactions is small when the procedure is performed according to FDA guidelines by trained personnel.
• You are required and you agree to report to us any plasmapheresis reaction you experience while you are at PlasmaLab or after you leave our donor center.

Occasionally, red blood cells may not be returned to your vascular system. If this should happen and you lose more than 200 ml of red blood cells, you will have actually donated whole blood and you will be required by FDA guidelines to refrain from further blood or plasma donations for eight weeks.

Our primary focus is antibody research. Antibodies are blood proteins produced as part of an immune response. Not all autoimmune diseases produce antibodies; thus, we only collect plasma from individuals with antibody-mediated autoimmune conditions.

You do not need to know your *blood type in order to donate plasma at PlasmaLab.

*Blood types: A+, A-, B+, B-, AB+, AB-, O+, O-

Rh-negative blood is not a qualifier for our Rare Red Blood Cell Antibody program. This program is for individuals who have been medically diagnosed with one of the following rare conditions: anti-Wra, anti-Fyb, anti-Fya, anti-C, anti-E, anti-Kell, anti-K Cellano, anti-Luca, anti-Dia.

PlasmaLab was founded in 1985 by Kay Hill, BS, MT (ASCP) and Reynold M. Karr, M.D. The company has serviced over 300 research and diagnostic facilities in more than 30 countries.

PlasmaLab is licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). All applicable FDA, Good Manufacturing Practices, HIPAA, and Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act regulations are strictly followed.

PlasmaLab is located at 3128 Norton Avenue in Everett WA. Our building is 1 block east of Providence Regional Medical Center Pavilion for Women and Children.

Free 90-minute parking is available in front of our building. Handicap parking near our entry ramp is available. Please note: we are located on a one-way street.

We do not have offices in other locations and are not associated with other blood/plasma donation centers or medical offices. All plasma donations take place at our medical center in Everett WA.