Central California Blood Center joins new partnership

FRESNO, Calif. -- The shelves are low at the Central California Blood Center. Every day, donors are needed to resupply local hospitals in need of the lifesaving gift.

Now the blood center is taking steps and combining forces to help keep that gift flowing.

"The new partnership involves four blood services around the U.S. that have laboratories," said Christopher Staub, Central California Blood Center President, and CEO.

Staub says the center joined other blood service centers around the country to create Testing Labs United.

He says community blood services do not receive funding from the federal government and receive some fees from hospitals. So creating one entity has allowed the blood center more benefits.

"By pulling our numbers together, our relatively small to midsize blood center can be a stronger negotiating entity," Staub said.

That means technology and materials are purchased at a lower price point.

This analyzer tests blood donations for communicable diseases.

"What makes us unique is we do our own donor testing. so what that means is we get our testing results done quicker and be able to supply the hospitals with the correct products they need to save patient's lives," said Lori Orosco, Central California Blood Center technical director.

The blood center in Fresno is only one of two labs in California doing its own testing.

Over the next five years, the partnership is expected to save the blood center about a million dollars on laboratory testing fees.