But a triple-crown combo of antiviral Remdesivir, an anti-inflammatory steroid called Dexamethasone, and the COVID convalescent plasma (CCP) from past survivors brought him back from the brink.

Kim-Anh Nguyen, CEO of the Blood Bank of Hawaii.

But with soaring cases the Blood Bank of Hawaii is in desperate need of more donors.

“It’s also due to the right blood type of plasma being needed for each patient because plasma, as a blood product, is dependent on blood type match between donor and recipient.

Recovered patients have given more than 200 doses, according to the Blood Bank of Hawaii, and half of those have been transfused to around 50 patients.

Heeding the call to help, Ma was eager to donate his plasma after recovery.

But an FDA rule bans certain people from donating blood or plasma for a certain period of time surrounding a variety of health factors, or what the feds call “high-risk activities.”.

Yet the rules currently require a year deferral past any same-sex male encounter before donating blood or plasma.

Research from UCLA says more than 4.2 million gay American donors could become eligible to donate blood — and plasma if any of them are recovered from COVID — if the feds lifted the deferral altogether.

Many want the FDA to act fast to widen the blood and plasma donor pool.

“This clearly includes otherwise-safe donations of convalescent plasma from those who have recovered from the virus for at least two weeks and likely carry the antibodies needed to fight the virus.”.

“In evaluating whether donations are safe, I believe the Food and Drug Administration, together with its approved blood donation centers, need to further evaluate the current restrictions to assure they are based purely on up-to-date scientific understanding and not on outdated and unjustifiable fears,” Case said.

MORE DETAILS FROM THE BLOOD BANK OF HAWAII

Blood Bank of Hawaii’s COVID convalescent plasma (CCP) information page is here

(Women with a history of pregnancy will undergo an additional antibody blood test screen prior to plasma donation.)

“As the stewards of Hawaii’s blood supply, Blood Bank of Hawaii has, and always will, keep our top priority the safety of the blood transfused to patients and the safety of our volunteer donors

Eligibility criteria and FDA deferrals are the result of research and scientific data associated with safeguarding a volunteer-based blood supply against public health risk, including that of the HIV virus.”

“In solidarity with America’s Blood Centers and other organizations in the blood community, Blood Bank of Hawaii strongly advocated for the use of data driven, scientifically-based deferral periods that are applied fairly and consistently among blood donors who engage in similar risk activities