January 2021 Blood Drives

There are blood drives throughout the region in this last week of January.To find one near you, visit the Red Cross blood drive website. 

Red Cross Donation Safety Protocols

The top priority of the Red Cross is the safety of our donors, volunteers, employees and blood recipients, and we are committed to transparency with the American public during this evolving public health emergency. There are no data or evidence that this coronavirus can be transmissible by blood transfusion, and there have been no reported cases worldwide of transmissions for any respiratory virus including this coronavirus.Donating blood products is essential to community health and eligible donors are strongly urged to donate now. The Red Cross only collects blood from individuals who are healthy and feeling well at the time of donation – and who meet other eligibility requirements.At each blood drive or donation center, Red Cross employees follow thorough safety protocols, including:·

• Wearing gloves and changing them often
• Wiping down donor-touched areas after every collection
• Using sterile collection sets for every donation
• Preparing the arm for donation with aseptic scrub
• Conducting donor mini-physicals to ensure donors are healthy and well on day of donation

We have also increased our vigilance concerning some of these safety protocols including:

• Enhanced disinfecting of surfaces and equipment
• Providing hand sanitizer for use before entering and throughout the donation appointment
• Temperature checks before presenting donors enter the blood drive or donation center
• Following social distancing practices between donors including donor beds, as well as waiting and refreshment areas
• During this time, blankets typically used by platelet, Power Red and AB Elite donors at Red Cross blood donation centers will be laundered after each use, which may limit the availability. Donors are encouraged to bring their own blankets, but electric blankets and heating pads are not permitted.
• Staff wearing basic face masks
• For the safety of our donor community and in accordance with CDC guidelines, all donors are required to wear a face covering or mask. Please bring a face covering or mask to your donation. If you do not have one, a mask will be provided to you. In alignment with the CDC, the Red Cross does not permit valve face masks at our blood drives or donation centers for employees, volunteers or donors. Face shields can be worn in addition to face masks but not as a substitute.

To ensure our staff are healthy each day, we have implemented standard staff health assessments prior to all blood drives.Finally, only eligible and healthy people are allowed to give blood.These mitigation measures will help ensure blood recipient safety, as well as staff and donor safety in reducing contact with those who may potentially have this respiratory infection.Book your next donation appointment for the days and weeks ahead to help ensure a sufficient blood supply for patients in need.

COVID-19 Vaccine and Blood Donor Eligibility Information

The Red Cross is following FDA blood donation eligibility guidance for those who receive a COVID-19 vaccination, and deferral times may vary depending on the type of vaccine an individual receives. But there’s no deferral time if you receive the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. If you’ve received a COVID-19 vaccine, you’ll need to provide the manufacturer name when you come to donate. Upon vaccination, you should receive a card or printout indicating what COVID-19 vaccine was received, and we encourage you to bring that card with you to your next donation. The following eligibility guidelines apply to each COVID-19 vaccine received, including boosters:

• There is no deferral time for eligible blood donors who are vaccinated with an inactivated or RNA based COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by Moderna or Pfizer.
• Eligible blood donors who are vaccinated with a replication-defective virus COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by AstraZeneca or Janssen/J&J must wait two weeks before giving blood.
• Eligible blood donors who do not know what type of COVID-19 vaccine they received must wait four weeks before giving blood.
• Individuals who have received a COVID-19 vaccine are not eligible to donate convalescent plasma.
• Regardless of the type of vaccine an individual receives, all donors must be symptom-free and feeling well at the time of donation. If an individual is experiencing any symptoms from the COVID-19 vaccine, the Red Cross asks that they postpone their donation until they are feeling better.
• If you have an appointment scheduled and need to change your donation date based on the above guidance, click here» .
• If you have further eligibility questions, please call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

 Please note: The Red Cross is not a healthcare provider and is not administering COVID-19 vaccinations. We encourage individuals interested in getting a COVID-19 vaccine to reach out to their healthcare provider.