Talecris plasma centers along border discussed in NYT's Sunday article

A plasma center in Eagle Pass, Texas run by Talecris Biotherapeutics was featured in a Sunday New York Times article about the practice of locating the plasma centers along the Mexican border and in areas with high rates of poverty and drug abuse.
In the article, Bruce Nogales, who runs plasma collection for Talecris, says the same precautions are taken at the border as everywhere else the company collects plasma.
“I don’t understand the difference between having a center in El Paso and having a center in Columbus, Ohio,” Nogales told the paper. Nine of Talecris’s 71 collection centers, including four new ones, are on the border, the article notes. Talecris, which is based in Research Triangle Park, also operates a plasma center in Clayton.
Earlier this year the Australian company CSL Ltd. scrapped a $3.1 billion buyout of Talecris after the deal raised red flags at the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, which worried that the combination would hurt competition and raise prices for medicines made from blood plasma.
Talecris makes drugs such as Gamunex, which is used to treat patients with various immune diseases, at a massive Clayton factory. Company officials in November announced they chose that plant for a big expansion after receiving the promise of as much as $20 million in state and local incentives.
Talecris had an initial public offering more than two months ago and began trading publicly Oct. 1. The stock has declined of late as Wall Street worries about the broader market for medicines made from blood plasma that Talecris sells.
The recession has led to an increase in plasma collection, which could create an oversupply. The downturn also is weakening demand, and patients' ability to pay, for medicines.