Important rights for honorary blood donors. The Patient Rights Ombudsman reminds the rules

Honorary blood donors and people who decide to have transplants save lives. They can count on special privileges.

- Blood and marrow donors are the silent heroes of our healthcare system. Their selfless attitude saves the lives of thousands of patients every year. The privileges they are entitled to are an expression of social recognition, but above all a form of support and encouragement to continue providing help. The state has an obligation not only to protect the health of its citizens, but also to appreciate those who actively save it - explained Bartłomiej Chmielowiec, the Patient Rights Ombudsman.

The Monetary Policy Council recalled the special rights that honorary blood donors and transplant donors have in the healthcare system.

Every person who donates blood free of charge and is registered at the Blood Donation and Blood Treatment Centre is entitled to:

• title of "Honorary Blood Donor"
• leave from work on the day of donating blood and on the following day and for the period of periodic medical examination of blood donors under the terms specified in separate regulations, while retaining the right to remuneration

There are three aspects to consider when exercising this right:

- it is the employer's responsibility to dismiss the employee

– the employer should be informed in advance by the employee about the absence

– the employee receives leave from work for the day on which he or she wanted to donate blood or for a few hours if, for medical reasons, the donation did not take place.

• reimbursement of travel costs to the organizational unit of the public blood service on the principles specified in the regulations on allowances and other payments for business trips within the country; the travel costs are borne by the organizational unit of the public blood service
• a regenerative meal after donating blood or its components with a caloric value of 4,500 calories, very often it is the equivalent of 9 chocolates
• donors of rare groups and donors who, prior to collection, underwent immunization or other procedures in order to obtain plasma or diagnostic sera, are entitled, in addition to the above-mentioned rights , to a cash equivalent for the collected blood and related procedures
• the possibility of deducting a donation for blood donation purposes in a given tax year - the amount of the relief depends on the amount of blood donated. The amount of the relief is calculated by multiplying the amount of blood (or plasma) actually donated by the conversion factor adopted for this relief, in the form of the applicable cash equivalent for 1 liter of blood donated.

As explained by the RPP, the privileges for " Meritorious Honorary Blood Donors " are broader. This title is granted to every woman who has donated at least 5 liters of blood and every man who has donated at least 6 liters of blood, as well as anyone who has donated an amount of other blood components corresponding to this volume.

In addition to the rights of "Honorary Blood Donors", they are also entitled to:

• the right to use health care services out of turn and pharmaceutical services provided in pharmacies;
• the right to free medicines included in the list of reimbursed medicines (within the limits specified by law);
• the possibility of travelling free of charge or with a specific discount (50% or 75%) on public transport. The relevant legislative body (municipal council, city council) of individual local government units independently establishes regulations regarding the method of granting discounts. A list of most cities in which such a discount occurs can be found https://krwiodawcy.org/ulgi-w-komunikacji-miejska.

In the case of "Meritorious Transplant Donors", the privileges are analogous to those for distinguished blood donors, due to their contribution to saving the lives of other people:

• the right to use healthcare services within the National Health Fund out of turn;
• reimbursement of costs related to the procedure (food, accommodation, travel to tests and treatment);
• fully paid days off for the duration of tests and surgery;
• Honorary Transplant Donor ID Card;
• the right to use healthcare services within the National Health Fund out of turn;
• free reimbursed medicines (in accordance with the regulations that specify this).

Using healthcare services out of turn:

• admission outside the waiting list and provision of services as soon as possible,
• this does not guarantee that the service will be provided on the day of reporting, but the date should be set out of turn,
• in the case of AOS, the deadline should not be longer than 7 business days from the date of notification.

To benefit from the benefits, you must have an appropriate document confirming your status:

• Meritorious Honorary Blood Donor ID Card
• Meritorious Transplant Donor ID Card

These rights apply to both public and some non-public facilities that have concluded an agreement with the National Health Fund.

The Patients’ Rights Ombudsman encourages all entitled persons to exercise their rights, and medical personnel to respect them.

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