Organization expands footprint and disrupts industry with cost-effective testing services

April 14, 2021

Media Release (for immediate release)

MEDIA CONTACT:
Wendy Trivisonno
401-439-6030
wtrivisonno@nbtc.coop

ATLANTA, Georgia — The National Blood Testing Cooperative (NBTC) is pleased to announce the addition of Northern California Community Blood Bank, headquartered in Eureka, CA, to the organization which now consists of 14 nonprofit blood centers located throughout the country. NBTC was created in 2019 to allow community-based blood centers to take control of their blood testing needs. Today, NBTC provides high-quality testing services, at cost, to its owner-members by eliminating unnecessary profit mark-ups that large testing entities charge.

“We’re excited to be joining forces with such an excellent organization. Northern California Community Blood Bank is looking forward to working with all of the NBTC owners and leveraging their expertise in the blood banking industry,” said Kate Witthaus, CEO of Northern California Community Blood Bank. “For over 70 years, we have helped donors of the Northern California coast meet the needs of local patients. This collaboration with NBTC is a great fit and will take our testing services to the next level of efficiency and help move our mission forward.”

The NBTC was one of the first cooperatives formed specifically for blood testing needs. It offers all infectious disease and confirmatory testing services, including Chagas and Babesia testing. NBTC has tested over a million units since the start of 2020, the majority in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. With state-of-the-art testing facilities in Atlanta, GA and the San Francisco Bay Area, NBTC provides its members with a personalized level of service and peace of mind that they can’t find with larger third-party testing services.

“For too long, the majority of independent blood centers have faced staffing challenges and outsourced their testing to one or two central laboratories without any control over cost. NBTC was created with a cooperative business model in mind to combat the rising costs associated with keeping the blood supply safe, while also helping community blood centers remain competitive on the national landscape,” said Stacy Sime, President/CEO of LifeServe Blood Center and Chair of Board of NBTC. “We are deeply rooted in the blood banking industry and provide our members more control over the quality, cost, and turnaround time of product testing services so that they can better serve the needs of their patients, customers, and partners.”

Northern California Community Blood Bank becomes the fifth new member to come on board since NBTC’s formation with more community blood centers expected to join by end of year. NBTC current owner members include:

• Cascade Regional Blood Services (Tacoma, WA)
• Central Pennsylvania Blood Bank (Hummelstown, PA)
• Community Blood Center of Ozarks (Springfield, MO)
• Kentucky Blood Center (Lexington, KY)
• LifeServe Blood Center (Des Moines, IA)
• LifeShare Blood Center (Shreveport, LA)
• LifeSouth Community Blood Centers (Gainesville, FL)
• Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center (Davenport, IA)
• Northern California Community Blood Bank (Eureka, CA)
• Shepeard Blood Center (Augusta, GA)
• Stanford Blood Center (Palo Alto, CA)
• Suncoast Communities Blood Bank (Sarasota, FL)
• The Blood Center (New Orleans, LA)
• We Are Blood (Austin, TX)

*Founding Owner Members in Bold

“We are thrilled with the steady growth of our membership and are dedicated to serving as a national partner for innovative community blood centers. Northern California Community Blood Bank’s commitment to quality blood products makes them an ideal member and we welcome them to the NBTC family,” said Wendy Trivisonno, President and CEO of the NBTC. “We recognize that too often blood centers face constraints and challenges when it comes to testing products, but we’re confident that our cooperative approach will continue to help improve efficiencies for our members not only from a testing perspective, but also to strengthen their brand awareness in the industry and in their local communities.”

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About National Blood Testing Cooperative

The National Blood Testing Cooperative (NBTC) is a blood testing cooperative organization that allows community-based blood centers to take control of their blood testing needs. Formed in 2019 by nine local blood centers, NBTC provides high-quality testing services, at cost, to its owner-members by eliminating unnecessary profit mark-ups that large testing entities charge. More information is available at nbtc.coop.