Red Cross appeals for donors during national blood shortage

The American Red Cross said Monday that it urgently needs blood donations because the national blood supply has dropped nearly 25 percent since early August.

Back-to-back climate-related disasters have hampered blood collection efforts, and a summer shortfall has made the shortage worse. Patients in need of transfusions as part of cancer and sickle cell disease treatments face the potential danger of not having the blood supply they need, the Red Cross said. The organization asked for people of all blood types to donate. Platelet donors and those with type O blood are especially needed.

"For so many patients living with urgent medical care needs, crises don't stop with natural disasters," Pampee Young, M.D., chief medical officer for the American Red Cross, said in a news release. "In fact, in some instances the stress of a disaster can lead to a medical crisis for some individuals battling sickle cell disease. The need for blood is constant. Every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood—an often-invisible emergency that the rest of the world doesn't see behind closed hospital doors. Now, that urgency has only heightened."

August donor turnout was likely low because of summer travel and back-to-school activities, according to the Red Cross. This contributed to a 30,000-donation shortfall in August alone. Then, Hurricane Idalia recently caused more than 700 units of blood and platelets to go uncollected, according to the Red Cross, which is now monitoring for any impact from Hurricane Lee.

The Red Cross distributes blood supplies to about 2,500 hospitals and transfusion centers in the United States.

To make an appointment to give blood or platelets, donors can use the Red Cross Blood app, visit RedCrossBlood.org, or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

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