BEIJING, Aug. 30-- The Shanghai Blood Center has teamed up with a local insurance company to offer free life and medical coverage to blood donors in an attempt to convince more people to roll up their sleeves and give a few milliliters.

Shanghai is in a constant struggle to keep up with demand for blood, importing 20 percent of the blood needed in the city every year from other parts of the country.

The blood center will pay the premiums for insurance offered to donors, while New China Life Insurance Co has agreed to give the center a discount of 50 percent on each policy.

"This is the first time our company has cooperated with a blood center to offer favorably priced insurance to blood donors," said Ye Weiling from New China.

Donors will receive one-year of insurance coverage against unexpected death or injury. The policies will also cover out-patient and emergency treatment for accidental injuries and treatment for 11 serious diseases like cancer.

The amount of coverage depends on how often and how much blood a person donates.

For those who donate 200 milliliters of blood, the most common donation size, the donor can receive up to 20,000 yuan(US$2,469) for death or disability. They can get a maximum of 5,000 yuan for accidental injuries and 3,000 yuan to cover the treatment of serious diseases.

For bigger donations and regular donors, the center will offer more compensation.

Regular donors will be offered policies that pay up to 160,000 yuan for death or disability.

Blood administration said they expect the new policy will convince more people to donate blood.

"The city needs some 74 tons of blood for clinical use every year and about 20 percent must be imported from other provinces, as local donation is unable to cover the huge blood consumption," said Song Qi from the Shanghai Blood Administration Office.

(Source: Shanghai Daily news)