Poles who donate blood plasma for Covid treatment given tax relief, time off work and chocolate

People previously infected with the coronavirus can receive tax relief for donating blood plasma, the government has confirmed. They also get two days off work, public transport discounts, a package of medical consultations and nine bars of chocolate.

Certain treatments for COVID-19 patients use so-called “convalescent plasma” taken from those who have recovered from the illness but whose blood still contains antibodies to the virus.

Blood donation centres have issued appeals for people who have had the disease to come forward. Figures including President Andrzej Duda, who tested positive for coronavirus last month, and a group of Pauline monks have joined the drive.

The ministry of finance has now confirmed that blood and plasma donations are eligible for tax relief as part of a system that allows Polish taxpayers to subtract the amount that they donate to charities and religious institutions from their income tax base. This includes the monetary value of donations in kind.

Blood and plasma are valued at 130 zloty per litre, and an adult can donate up to 25 litres of plasma and 2.7 litres of blood each year, reports Rzeczpospolita. The total amount of annual income that can be deducted through all charitable donations is, however, capped at 6%.

To qualify for the tax relief, donors must keep a certificate from the blood collection point that confirms the amount of blood or components donated without taking payment. Those who sell their blood or plasma do not qualify for the relief.

To further encourage potential plasma donors, on Saturday Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced that they would also receive two days off work, discounts on train travel and municipal public transport, as well as a medical package that includes consultation with a cardiologist, neurologist and pulmonologist.

Donors had already been receiving one day off work as well as nine bars of chocolate, reports Onet.

Interest in donations is growing, according to the Regional Centre for Blood Donation and Treatment (RCKiK) in Białystok, which coordinates collection and testing of plasma across the country.

“We have begun operating additional telephone lines; one line was not enough, because interest has increased,” Piotr Radziwon, the unit’s director, told the Polish Press Agency (PAP).

The total number of units of plasma received from former COVID-19 patients has reached 9,500 from 5,200 donors, according to PAP. As a result, 8,000 patients have undergone therapy using that plasma.

Today, President Duda published a video showing him donating plasma and encouraging others to do so. Last week, a group of monks from Jasna Góra Monastery – home to Poland’s most important Catholic shrine – also joined the plasma drive.

Patients who want to donate plasma need to present proof of having had the coronavirus – such as a positive test result. They can do so at least 28 days after they cease to have symptoms or 18 days after completion of the mandatory 10-day isolation for diagnosed patients. The donations process takes around half an hour.

While coronavirus infections and deaths rose rapidly throughout October, the situation has now “stabilised”, according to the health minister. The government announced on Saturday that it was extending coronavirus restrictions until after Christmas to avoid a resurgence of the virus.

Poland today recorded its lowest daily number of new COVID-19 cases (15,002) since 26 October and of deaths (156) since 16 November. It also, however, conducted its lowest daily number of tests (27,400) since 12 October.

Main image credit: Vegasjon/Wikimedia Commons (under CC BY-SA 4.0)

Maria Wilczek

Maria Wilczek is deputy editor of Notes from Poland. She is a regular writer for The Times, The Economist and Al Jazeera English, and has also featured in Foreign Policy, Politico Europe, The Spectator and Gazeta Wyborcza.