The national blood shortage that began earlier in the year has now become a blood crisis, meaning there’s a critical depletion in blood supply across the country.
The American Red Cross is asking for donors of all blood types.
Dan Dowling is the regional communications manager for the American Red Cross of Northern New England. He said appointments for blood donations have been dropping since Memorial Day.
“It's usually a time of year when we don't see a lot of donations happening simply because families are finishing up summer vacations. Kids are heading back to school soon,” Dowling said. “If we can get through the next couple of weeks, I think we're optimistic that the fall will be in better shape.”
The summer also sees increased trauma that can contribute to lower blood supply.
Dowling said there has only been one other time in Red Cross history that there has been a blood crisis, in January 2022.
“We're at a four-year summer low,” Dowling said. “We're really trying to get donors to come in and donate.”
Dowling said donations for all blood types are welcome, though they are also looking for type O donations.
“It's fallen below a one-day supply over the past couple of weeks,” Dowling said. “Type O is a universal type of blood. That's what they reach for in an emergency.”
The Red Cross has begun limiting its distributions of type O blood to hospitals.
Sign up to donate blood at https://redcrossblood.org.
