Society
Nobel Laureate Reveals U.S. Exports Tens of Billions in Paid Plasma While Other Countries Ban Payment
Sean Carroll Mindscape
353 | Alvin Roth on the Economics of Morally Contested Markets
"We export tens of billions of dollars of plasma and plasma products every year because we pay donors. There's no shortage of plasma here. And the people who donate plasma are on the whole not as rich as the people who don't donate plasma. It's something people do to supplement their income."
Roth disclosed that the United States is the world's plasma supplier, exporting tens of billions annually, while most other countries ban paying plasma donors yet rely on U.S. imports. He cited recent research showing that when plasma facilities open, payday loan usage drops, suggesting paid plasma donation provides crucial income supplementation for struggling Americans. The World Health Organization lists plasma as an essential pharmaceutical but recommends against paying donors.
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Sean Carroll Mindscape