About Blood Usage Reimbursement
Blood Usage Reimbursement offers donors an opportunity to help offset/recover blood service fees where insurance does not cover them.
These fees are charged by The Blood Center to healthcare institutions and incurred by recipients of blood components whose blood service fees are not covered by insurance. Blood Usage Reimbursement is a voucher that can be assigned to anyone who needs it by the donor prior to its expiration date. The voucher value will be paid directly to the patient who received blood services at a healthcare facility. Expenses that are reimbursable include only blood service fees (based on The Blood Center's service fee schedule) on the patient's hospital bill. Patient's with insurance, Medicare, Medicaid or another third party payer are not eligible for vouchers except if the insurance policy specifically excludes blood and blood components. A patient co-pay or deductible is also not covered under this benefit.
Benefits of the Blood Usage Reimbursement Voucher
What is the benefit? A voucher with the value of $20 that can be assigned to anyone the donor chooses within the allowable time, who has received blood or blood components that have not been reimbursed by insurance.
Are there limitations to the benefit? Each recipient can receive a maximum benefit of $1,000, or 50 vouchers in any calendar year. Blood Usage Reimbursement benefits are based on The Blood Center's schedule of service fees for blood and blood components and cannot apply to crossmatching, blood typing, administrative fees, autologous or directed unit fees, or any other hospital fees.
What are blood service fees? Healthcare institutions are charged a processing fee for blood and blood components provided by The Blood Center. This fee covers the cost of recruiting the donor, collecting, testing, processing, labeling, storing and distributing the blood and blood components to healthcare providers. There is no charge for the blood itself since it is donated freely by volunteer blood donors.
How long does the benefit/voucher last? 120 days from the date of donation
What is reimbursable? Expenses that are reimbursable include only blood service fees on the patient's hospital bill. Patient's with insurance, Medicare, Medicaid or another third party payer are not eligible for vouchers except if the insurance policy specifically excludes blood and blood components. A patient co-pay or deductible is also not covered under this benefit.
Are there any preexisting condition limitations? No medical condition requiring a transfusion of any type of blood component will be excluded from this benefit.
Do I have to be a Commit for Life (CFL) member to get a voucher with my donation? No, all donors receive a voucher each time they donate.
How Do Blood Usage Reimbursement Vouchers Work?
Who is eligible to receive a voucher? A donor, except for autologous, directed, and therapeutic donors, who donates blood for general use gets one voucher, no matter the type of procedure/donation, for each procedure/donation. Non-therapeutic hemachromatosis donors are eligible to receive a voucher.
Does the voucher expire? The voucher expires 120 days from the donation date. The voucher can only be applied to blood used prior to the expiration date as long as the voucher is assigned to the chosen recipient prior to its expiration.
Why does a voucher expire within 120 days? We encourage all donors to Commit for Life and donate once a quarter. Some procedure types have deferral periods longer than 90 days. A voucher is received for each donation made. This is based on donation return eligibility.
Do I have to name someone at the time of donation? No, you can define who receives the voucher any time prior to its expiration.
To whom can I assign the voucher? You can assign the voucher to anyone you choose who uses blood components that are not reimbursed by insurance prior to the voucher's expiration and who meets the criteria as listed for a voucher.
Can I assign a voucher to myself? Yes, you can. To assign a voucher to yourself, you must do so through Digital Donor or by calling the Blood Usage Reimbursement Hotline at (713) 791-6339. Your voucher cannot be applied if the unit received is an autologous unit.
Is there a waiting period for the voucher to be activated? The voucher will be available for use the day after the donation.
How do I assign my voucher? This can be done on Digital Donor at www.giveblood.org or by calling the Blood Usage Reimbursement line at (713) 791-6339. You need the recipient's name, birth date, and hospital name or unique claim number.
Can I print a voucher to give to the recipient? Yes, you can print a voucher using Digital Donor, but a paper voucher is not necessary to place a claim and receive the benefit. Possession of a printed voucher does not guarantee the voucher is valid or assigned to the holder. Vouchers must be verified by The Blood Center when a claim is filed.
Filing a Claim with the Blood Usage Reimbursement Benefit
How do I place a claim using the voucher? Claims can be submitted online through Digital Donor at www.giveblood.org or by calling the Blood Usage Reimbursement line at (713) 791-6339.
Must a claim be filed in order for benefits to be paid? Yes
What information does the blood recipient/patient need to provide to place a claim? The patient should provide their itemized bill showing blood fees remaining on the bill not reimbursed by insurance and an explanation of benefits from the insurance company showing the item was not paid by insurance. The itemized hospital bill must include the patient's name, mailing address, hospital, dates of transfusion, procedure description and number of units received. A summary bill is not adequate.
How is a claim paid? A claim is paid directly to a blood recipient via a check once the claim information is verified, and it is determined that the blood service fees were not reimbursed by insurance.
When must a claim be filed? A claim must be placed prior to the expiration of the voucher and within 90 days from the date of hospital discharge. Blood usage must occur prior to the expiration of the voucher. Once a claim is filed with The Blood Center, any future vouchers earned may be applied to this past blood usage up to the maximum annual benefit for those blood charges that are unreimbursed.
How long do I have to file a claim? A claim must be filed within 90 days from the date of hospital discharge.
When are claims paid? Claims are paid weekly.
How long can a claim be paid on? A claim will be open for 12 months.
What is the maximum benefit? $1,000 or 50 vouchers per calendar year.
Limitations of the Blood Usage Reimbursement Benefit
Are any fees excluded from voucher payment? Yes, hospital charges related to transfusion such as crossmatching, blood typing, administrative fees, autologous and directed unit fees, or any other hospital fees are not eligible to be paid with a voucher.
Are autologous, directed or therapeutic donations eligible to receive vouchers? No,these types of donations are not eligible to receive a voucher, but non-therapeutic hemachromatosis donors are eligible to receive a voucher.
Are autologous, directed or therapeutic units eligible to be paid for by vouchers? No, vouchers cannot be used to cover fees for these types of donations.
Additional Information
If you have questions or if you would like additional information about Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center's blood usage reimbursement program, please call (713) 791-6339 or e-mail us.