If you get the COVID-19 vaccine, can you still donate convalescent plasma?

SANTO ANTÓNIO – As the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations continues to increase in Bexar County, there is still a great need for convalescent plasma to treat the disease. The new vaccines are an effective tool against COVID-19, but you will no longer be able to donate convalescent plasma if you receive one.

Dr. Samantha Gomez Ngamsuntikul, associate medical director at BioBridge Global, said that vaccines and convalescent plasma do not mix exactly.

“If you are donating convalescent plasma COVID and you receive the vaccine, it is not possible to donate convalescent plasma,” said Ngamsuntikul.

The Food and Drug Administration explains that it is unclear whether the quality of the plasma’s immune response is as effective as the plasma of people who fought the virus without the vaccine.

However, as the vaccines currently available do not include the virus itself, Ngamsuntikul said you could still donate blood.

“For the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, they are mRNA vaccines and, at the moment, there is no waiting to donate,” said Ngamsuntikul. “You can still donate whole blood and platelets.”

Ngamsuntikul says it is crucial to donate blood now.

“To make sure we have enough blood for our local community,” she said.

You can schedule a donation meeting with the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center by calling 210-731-5590 or visiting southtexasblood.org.

click here for more coverage of the KSAT COVID-19 vaccine.