Red Cross declares rare national blood supply crisis amid summer shortfall

29 Jul 2026, 19:00 · Medical Xpress

by Ellyn Vohnoutka

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The American Red Cross has declared a national blood supply crisis for only the second time in its history, warning that a drop in donations is threatening the availability of blood nationwide.

The organization, which supplies about 40% of the nation's blood, said donations have fallen to a four-year summer low even as hospital demand rises during the summer trauma season.

Extreme heat, poor air quality and widespread foodborne illness have kept donors away this summer, further straining supplies, the organization said.

As of its July 27 announcement, the Red Cross had less than a one-day national supply of type O positive blood, the most commonly transfused type.

It has begun limiting distributions of type O blood to hospitals to preserve it for the most critical, life-threatening emergencies.

Type O blood accounts for the majority of Red Cross distributions. Type O positive can be given safely to roughly 80% of patients, while type O negative is the universal type relied on when there is no time to determine a patient's blood type.

However, donations of all blood types are desperately needed.

When hospitals also have adequate supplies of A, B and AB blood, they can more often match patients to their own blood type. This preserves type O blood for people who truly need it and for emergencies, the Red Cross said.

The only other national blood crisis came in January 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, the Red Cross said, it has added safeguards, including closer planning with hospitals, which now schedule much of their expected blood needs ahead of time.

Even so, a sustained drop in donations has again pushed the national supply to crisis levels.

"This summer, blood donations simply are not keeping pace with hospital demand, and inventories—especially type O blood—remain under significant strain," said Chris Hrouda, president of Red Cross Biomedical Services.

"Every donation has the potential to help save lives, and we urgently need everyone who is eligible to make an appointment to give blood as soon as possible," he added.

The organization is offering incentives like movie tickets and Amazon gift cards to boost turnout and says just three more donors at each blood drive this summer could end the crisis and stabilize supplies.

Eligible donors, especially those with type O blood, are urged to schedule an appointment at RedCrossBlood.org as soon as possible and to keep giving in the weeks ahead to help rebuild supply.

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