The American Red Cross’ blood supply has reached emergency levels with 50,000 fewer donations than expected in June. This shortfall leaves the Red Cross with half the readily available blood products on hand now than at this time last year.
The Red Cross is calling on all eligible blood donors to roll up their sleeves and give as soon as possible. All blood types are needed, but especially O positive, O negative, B negative and A negative, in order to meet patient demand this summer.
This year’s mid-week Independence Day holiday reduced the number of Red Cross blood drives. Many sponsors, especially businesses, are unable to host drives because employees are taking extended vacations.
Patients don’t get a holiday from needing blood products. The need is constant. Every two seconds, someone in the United States needs a blood transfusion.
“Every day, the Red Cross must collect more than 17,000 pints of blood for patients at more than 3,000 hospitals and transfusion centers across the country. Of that, the Southern Blood Services Region must collect approximately 1,200 pints per day,” said Randy Edwards, CEO of the American Red Cross Southern Blood Services Region, serving Georgia and parts of South Carolina and Florida. “We need donors to make appointments in the coming days and weeks to help us ensure that all patient blood needs can be met.”