Current through Pa Acts 2024-53, 2024-56 through 2024-92
Section 6514.1 - Blood or blood components(a) No individual shall be denied blood or blood components for any reason unrelated to the medical needs of that individual provided that the blood or blood components are reasonably available.(b) An individual who receives blood or blood components from a facility charging a nonreplacement fee shall not be responsible for the replacement of blood or blood components so received or a nonreplacement fee if a blood bank offers to and within seven days of the offer is able to replace the blood or blood components so received.(c) All blood banks shall agree to the reciprocal exchange of blood as required by patient needs without regard for geographical location or blood bank affiliation. The various blood banks in the Commonwealth will begin the immediate implementation of the reciprocal exchange of blood in such a manner as not to jeopardize local blood supplies or cause misallocations of blood supplies. The receiving facility shall remit to the shipping facility the standard blood processing fee of said shipping facility for units received. Blood replacement requests may not be accumulated for more than sixty days from the date of transfusion.(d) Blood components shall be exchanged on a one-for-one basis and a kind-for-kind basis unless otherwise agreed to by the parties transferring and receiving blood components.(e) Effective January 1, 1980, any person charging a nonreplacement fee shall establish an upper limit on that fee, not to exceed the greater of: (1) one thousand dollars ($1,000) per individual per period of hospitalization; or(2) one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) per individual per calendar year.(f) No portion of a nonreplacement fee shall be assignable to any person and no unpaid nonreplacement fee may be forwarded to any person for collection other than to an attorney for the purpose of instituting collection litigation in the name of the person imposing the nonreplacement fee.1972, Dec. 6, P.L. 1614, No. 335, § 14.1, added 1978, Oct. 4, P.L. 984, No. 200, § 3, effective in 60 days.