FROM THE SYLVA HERALD:
“Mission Hospital drops Red Cross blood supply contract; might Harris Regional do the same?”
by Quintin Ellison
In the high-stakes business of blood, the American Red Cross is hemorrhaging regional market share as area hospitals, in search of lower prices and reliable delivery, sever decades-old relationships with the national charity.
This week, Mission Hospital and six affiliates, including Highlands-Cashiers Hospital, announced a new contract with The Blood Connection, a South Carolina nonprofit. The independent blood center was founded in 1979 to serve the Greenville area. It gained a North Carolina profile three years ago after partnering with hospitals in Henderson, Polk and Rutherford counties. The Blood Connection also provides blood and related products to the veterans’ hospital in Asheville.
Harris Regional, Swain County Hospital and Haywood Regional Medical Center – the failed MedWest system — remain Red Cross customers, at least for now. The Blood Connection has business ties to Duke LifePoint, Harris and Swain hospitals’ new owner.
Nationally, the Red Cross continues to dominate the blood supply market, controlling about 40 percent of the total. Last year, the charity collected 388,000 pints of blood and 28,000 units of platelets in the combined South Carolina and Carolinas Blood Services Regions, according to Amanda Edwards, this region’s community chapter executive. …
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