RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. The American Red Cross has declared a national blood supply crisis for only the second time in its history after summer donations fell to their lowest level in four years, urging Americans to make "immediate" donations—especially those with type O blood.
There is a particularly acute shortage of this type of blood, the most commonly transfused blood type. The Red Cross now has less than a one-day national supply of type O positive blood and this is now threatening hospitals’ ability to care for patients. The Red Cross is already limiting distributions of type O blood to hospitals, even though this is the most requested type.
Newsweek contacted the American Red Cross by email for comment on Wednesday morning.
The U.S. finds itself in a blood supply crisis because blood donations are not keeping up with hospitals’ demand, especially in the busy summer season—which emergency doctors and surgeons call "trauma season."
Trauma season, the period that runs approximately from Memorial Day to Labor Day, is often referred to as the "100 deadliest days of summer." These are days of warm weather, longer daylight hours, and school breaks, which regularly see a sharp rise in serious injuries, vehicle crashes and outdoor accidents.
It is a time when hospitals’ blood supply is critical for helping a surging number of patients; but "extreme heat, poor air quality and widespread foodborne illnesses" have contributed to lower donor turnout this summer, the Red Cross said. This has further strained the nation’s blood supply, forcing the organization to declare an emergency.
In June, the country’s blood supply fell nearly 25 percent, according to the Red Cross, and blood donations were at a four-year low.
Only once before has the Red Cross, the nation’s largest single provider of blood products, declared a national supply crisis—and that was not so long ago. In January 2022, the organization declared its first-ever national blood crisis as a result of complications from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thanks to an influx of donations after the Red Cross urged Americans to make an effort to end the supply crisis, the country’s blood supply recovered to sufficient levels by spring of that same year.
Every two seconds someone in the U.S. needs blood, according to the Red Cross—whether that is whole blood, red cells, platelets or plasma.
Patients across the U.S. are likely already feeling the consequences of the ongoing supply crisis, with some forced to wait for blood donations they "desperately" need, the Red Cross said.
The shortage of supply can be particularly devastating for patients facing the most critical, life-threatening emergencies across the country, and can literally make the difference between life and death. They could be accident and burn victims, heart surgery and organ transplant patients, or Americans receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or sickle cell disease.
A single car accident victim can require as many as 100 units of blood, according to the Red Cross.
The Red Cross is urging Americans to head to blood donation centers to help fix the current supply crisis. Just three more donors at each blood drive this summer can end the current supply crisis and stabilize the national supply, the organization said.
Donors with type O blood are particularly important, as this can be used on patients whose blood type is unknown and so can be used during emergencies and disasters.
That is why type O blood accounts for about 60 percent of Red Cross blood distributions, according to the organization. Type O positive—the most commonly transfused blood type—can be safely given to about 80 percent of patients, while type O negative remains the universal blood type "relied upon when every second counts," the Red Cross said.
According to the Stanford Blood Center, between 37 and 38 percent of Americans have type O blood, with O-positive accounting for the majority of this population. Only about 6.6 percent of Americans have type O negative blood.
Every blood type is needed to build up a strong national supply—A, B, and AB blood, as well as O. While type O is the most requested by hospitals, having an adequate supply of these other types ensures that patients can be given blood that matches their blood type whenever possible.
This also helps preserve type O blood for patients with type O blood and for life-threatening emergencies, when there is not enough time to determine a patient’s blood type.
In order to donate whole blood, donors must be:
Eligible donors can donate every 56 days, up to six times a year.
There are different requirements for platelet, plasma and power red donations. For more details, consult the Red Cross website.
Eligible donors can make an appointment to give blood using the Blood Donor App, by visiting RedCrossBlood.org or by calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).
The Red Cross is offering everyone who comes to give blood by July 31 a Fandango Movie Ticket by email (up to a $15 ticket price and fees). Those who donate between August 1 and 31 will receive a $20 Amazon Gift Card by email.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Ben Kelly and Tony Phillips
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