American Red Cross short 19,000 blood donations in July

Posted on August 5, 2024
The American Red Cross faces a blood shortage. (Photo courtesy: Pixabay/File)

By Blake Haas

BLOOMINGTON – The American Red Cross faces an emergency blood shortage due to the extreme heat.

Since July 1, the national blood supply has fallen by more than 25%.

“It’s impacted blood drives across the country, really in every state the Red Cross collects blood,” Jayce Eustice, the Red Cross’s regional communication manager, said on WJBC’s Afternoon Show. “(It) compounds with some other traditional, seasonal obstacles that we see in blood donations.”

In July, the Red Cross canceled 100 blood drives, which resulted in a shortage of more than 19,000 donations.

“We’re now currently working with these hospitals around the clock to meet the blood need of these paitents,” Eustice added.

Because Type O blood inventory is so low, distributions of the blood type are reduced compared to what hospitals count on.

To donate, visit RedCrossBlood.org.

Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].

Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].

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