People who give blood voluntarily, without naming a specific patient, will be able to get a free health check-up from November 2026. The checks will take place at Bulgarian Cardiology Institute centres in seven cities: Burgas, Yambol, Sofia, Pleven, Varna, Veliko Tarnovo and Shumen.
The pilot project is called "Give blood – get care". The institute is running it with the Regional Centre for Transfusion Haematology in Stara Zagora.
Right after giving blood, donors must ask for a personal 12-digit code. They use it to book an appointment at the reception of the relevant centre, wherever they gave blood. Donors can choose a doctor to suit their needs and the free slots. The check-ups cover eight fields: cardiology, neurology, internal medicine, endocrinology, gastroenterology, orthopaedics, urology and vascular surgery.
The organisers want more people to give blood free of charge. They also want relatives of sick people to stop searching for donors on their own in an emergency. A constant shortage of blood for life-saving operations often creates conditions for illegal trade in blood, which puts extra strain on the families of the seriously ill.
On 25 October we reported that the Regional Centre for Transfusion Haematology in Burgas is holding blood donation in Nessebar on 28 October and in Sveti Vlas on 29 October. On both days donors were received from 9am to 1pm.
About 182,000 people gave blood in Bulgaria in 2025, official data show. Only 20% of them gave entirely voluntarily and with no patient named in advance.