At White House Roundtable, CSL Behring CEO Paul Perreault Urges Plasma Donations to Fight COVID-19

July 31, 2020

At a July 30 White House Roundtable, plasma industry leader and CSL Behring (CSL) CEO Paul Perreault, urged people who have recovered from COVID-19 to consider donating plasma to help develop a potential treatment for people with serious complications from COVID-19.

Representing the plasma industry, Perreault pointed to the unprecedented CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance – an industry collaboration which was co-founded by CSL Behring and Takeda to expedite the development of a plasma-derived hyperimmune globulin therapy for COVID-19. 

The CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance will participate in a clinical trial, sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which should begin soon.

“The plasma industry has created an unprecedented partnership of world-leading companies at the outset of the pandemic in the CoVIg-19 Alliance and Coalition of Coalitions to help develop a reliable, scalable and sustainable plasma therapy to treat COVID-19,” said Perreault. 

During the meeting, Perreault also recognized the efforts of the Administration, saying “we are all in this together…as an industry, we would also like to thank the President and the Administration for their support in encouraging plasma donations.”

“Developing a plasma therapy to help fight COVID-19 is a critical endeavor,” said Kelvyn Cullimore, president and CEO of BioUtah. “We appreciate the leadership of CSL in bringing together an array industry partners committed to accelerate this therapy option.”

Perreault is a Utah resident who calls Park City home.

Individuals who have recovered from COVID-19, or know someone who has, can visit TheFightIsInUs.org to understand if they may be eligible to donate and find a nearby blood or plasma donor center using a simple self-screening tool.