Health Care

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Blood Donation Disclosure for COVID-19 Vaccinations

This bill requires blood donors to disclose if they have received a COVID-19 vaccination and allows people needing nonemergency blood transfusions to request specific types of donated blood based on the donor's vaccination status.

What This Bill Does

• Requires blood donation centers to ask donors if they have had a COVID-19 vaccine.
• If a donor has been vaccinated, the center must label the blood bag clearly to show this information.
• Does not allow personal details of the donor to be shown on the blood bag.
• Allows people who need nonemergency blood transfusions to ask for blood from donors based on their vaccination status.
• Requires healthcare workers to use the requested type of blood if it is available.

Who It Names or Affects

• Blood donation centers and staff
• People donating blood
• Patients needing nonemergency blood transfusions

Terms To Know

COVID-19

Includes any variant of SARS-CoV-2 or the original COVID-19 virus.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify what happens if the requested blood is not available.
• It is unclear how this will affect emergency situations where time is critical.
• There are no details on enforcement or penalties for noncompliance.

Official Summary Text

This bill requires

a
person who collects blood donations for the purpose of providing blood for a blood transfusion
to
re
quire a blood donor to disclose if the donor has received a COVID-19 vaccination.
As used in this bill, "
COVID-19
"

includes
any variant of SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19
.

If a donor indicates that the donor has received a COVID-19 vaccination, then
this bill re
quires
the person collecting the blood donation
to
label the blood bag conspicuously to indicate that the donor has received a COVID-19 vaccination.
However, this provision does
not authorize the disclosure of the donor's personal, identifiable informatio
n on the blood bag.

This bill authorizes a
person in need of a blood transfusion in a nonemergent situation
to
request blood based on the blood donor's COVID-19 vaccination status.

If the particular blood requested by the person is available at the heal
thcare facility in which the person is receiving care, then the healthcare professional performing the transfusion
must
use the requested blood.

Current Bill Text

<BillNo> <Sponsor>

SENATE BILL 828
By Hensley

SB0828
002789
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 68,
relative to blood donations.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 68, Chapter 32, Part 1, is amended by
adding the following as a new section:
(a) A person who collects blood donations for the purpose of providing blood for
a blood transfusion shall require a blood donor to disclose if the donor has received a
COVID-19 vaccination.
(b)
(1) If a donor indicates that the donor has received a COVID-19
vaccination, then the person collecting the blood donation must label the blood
bag conspicuously to indicate that the donor has received a COVID-19
vaccination.
(2) This subsection (b) does not authorize the disclosure of the donor's
personal, identifiable information on the blood bag.
(c)
(1) A person in need of a blood transfusion in a nonemergent situation
may request blood based on the blood donor's COVID-19 vaccination status.
(2) If the particular blood requested by the person is available at the
healthcare facility in which the person is receiving care, then the healthcare
professional performing the transfusion shall use the requested blood.
(d) As used in this section, "COVID-19" means the same as in § 14-1-101(5).
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.