A colleague at a Mid-Western U.S. Community Blood Center wonders what others are doing regarding donor identification, specifically, (i) does your Blood Center require prospective donors to present proof of identity (i.e. driver's license, student ID, Social Security Card, Major Credit Card, etc.), and (ii) does your Blood Center accept a driver's license number in lieu of a social security number for donors who are not willing to state their social security number?

The following responses have been received.

ADDENDA July 1, 2003

1. A transfusion medicine physician at a large blood center in Texas reports that their facility is currently struggling with this issue. With the recent publicized donor identity theft cases, their donors are increasingly hesitant to give their social security numbers. The Texas center has required a social security number for all allogeneic donors up to this point with the exception of rare directed units from family members from another country who came to donate. They are looking at other options at this time.

2. A representative from United Blood Services reports that all of their donors are required to provide acceptable forms of identification.

Identification is deemed acceptable if the ID includes the donor's legal name AND one of the following:

• Date of birth
• Social Security Number or assigned 'Progesa' Donor Number (permanently assigned donor number provided by their computer system)
• A photo in association with the donor's legal name.

Examples of Acceptable Identification include:

• UBS blood donor card
• Driver's license
• Social security card
• Security badge (with donor's photo and name)
• Passport
• Birth certificate

If an autologous donor is unable to provide such ID, they contact the donor's physician's office to confirm the following:

• Donor's name AND
• donor's date of birth or social security number

Two additional exceptions for persons without acceptable ID are explained below.

A. High School Blood Drives

• High school must provide a documentation of the donor's name, including date of birth or social security number, AND
• a school administrator, faculty or staff member must verify the identity of the donor.

B. Businesses where ID is not allowed to be carried:

• The business must provide documentation of donor's name, including the date of birth or social security, AND
• an authorized representative of the company must verify the identity of the donor.

3. A colleague in New York reports that their center is currently struggling with the same situation. They have always required a social security number, but this has increasingly become objectionable to donors due to fears of identity theft. They are now prepared to allow the presentation of their blood center's donor card, which has a unique ID number on it. If the donor does not show the donor card, they must give a social security number. They also do a soundex search on name, date of birth and social security number variables after all donations to identify any possible duplicate records.

ADDENDA July 3, 2003

4. A representative of BloodSource reports that their blood center (in Sacramento) accepts the following as proof of identification (verbatim):

• 'Photo ID (such as a driver's license)
• ID with a physical description
• Student ID
• Military ID
• Work ID badge with first and last name
• BloodSource Donor Card
• Donor photo - signed and dated by donor
• Copy of donor photo ID in donor record file (DRF)
• High School Yearbook or Organization Registry, i.e. church or club photo with name'.

They ask for a social security number (SS#), but do not insist on it if the donor refuses. In such a case, they assign an in-house alternate ID number. SS#s are not printed on the medical history.

ADDENDA July 5, 2003

5. Editor's Note: The most current version of proposed California Senate Bill 1081 (PDF file), if passed in its current form, would have an impact on donor identification requirements. Specifically, existing California regulations state that blood banks must require photographic identification, as specified, from all donors of human whole blood who receive payment, as defined, in return for the donation of that blood. This bill would also apply these requirements to plasma centers, and would expand the category of donors required to present photographic identification to include donors of blood components.

ADDENDA Nov. 12, 2006

6. A donor services director of a blood bank in California comments that any donor center that intends to sell plasma for 'manufacturing' in Europe is required by the EU to use a picture ID for the donors whose plasma is sold. His center is in the process of converting to using picture IDs for all of their donors, and he would like to hear from other centers what they are doing about using picture IDs for their donors.

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Ira A. Shulman, MD
CBBS e-Network Forum Editor & Moderator

W. Tait Stevens, MD
CBBS e-Network Forum Assistant Editor & Moderator