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News Articles: blood donations

James Harrison looks at 8-month-old Layla and her mother, Beth Ismay, in Sydney, Australia, in May 2018. It was the last time Harrison donated blood.

Tagged as: 

  • Obituaries

James Harrison, whose blood donations saved over 2 million babies, has died

Harrison, whose plasma contained a rare antibody, rolled up his sleeve 1,173 times from 1954 to 2018. The Australian is credited with helping 2.4 million babies and advancing scientific research.

March 03, 2025
|
By:
  • Rachel Treisman
Person donating blood. (Pexels)

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Red Cross announces national blood shortage, seeks donors in aftermath of Hurricane Debby

The American Red Cross encourages communities to stay ready and donate blood or blood platelets if they can during September's National Preparedness Month. The organization is experiencing a national blood emergency following Hurricane Debby and other severe weather events. 

August 28, 2024
|
By:
  • GPB News Staff
A worker separates bags of donated blood at a campaign organized by the Rotary Blood Bank in New Delhi, India.

Tagged as: 

  • Global Health

Here are 3 solutions to get blood to folks in 'blood deserts.' One is often illegal

Doctors have coined a term to describe places where blood for transfusions is not readily available: "blood deserts." When blood banks aren't around, they try different strategies to help patients.

April 11, 2024
|
By:
  • Simar Bajaj
The U.S. is moving to ease restrictions on blood donations from gay and bisexual men and other groups that traditionally face higher risks of HIV. Here, tubes direct blood from a donor into a bag in Davenport, Iowa, on Friday, Nov. 11, 2022.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

More gay and bisexual men will now be able to donate blood under finalized FDA rules

While the number of people eligible to donate blood has expanded, the agency says it will continue to monitor the safety of the blood supply.

May 11, 2023
|
By:
  • Jonathan Franklin
An expected change in FDA policy would make it easier for men who have sex with men to donate blood.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

FDA moves to ease restrictions on blood donations for men who have sex with men

Long criticized as discriminatory, the policy has prevented many gay and bisexual men from donating blood. The Food and Drug Administration revealed a draft of its new approach on Friday.

January 27, 2023
|
By:
  • Rob Stein and
  • Will Stone
Arm of blood donor

Tagged as: 

  • Health Care

Blood donations needed to avoid critical shortage

Donors through The Red Cross typically give a pint of blood which can then be broken down into its individual components -- platelets, plasma and red blood cells.

June 20, 2022
|
By:
  • Sofi Gratas
A phlebotomist tends to a blood donor during the Starts, Stripes, and Pints blood drive event in Louisville, Ky., in July. Rising numbers of organ transplants, trauma cases, and elective surgeries postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic have caused an increase in the need for blood products.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Doctors and patients are facing tough choices because of the national blood crisis

The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to a 62% drop in blood drives at schools and colleges, according to the American Red Cross.

January 14, 2022
|
By:
  • Jonathan Franklin
Gay and bisexual men in England, Scotland, and Wales can now donate blood, plasma and platelets under certain circumstances without having to wait three months, the National Health Service announced this week.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Gay And Bisexual Men Are Now Allowed To Donate Blood In England, Scotland And Wales

The shift in health policy in most of the U.K. reverses a decades-old rule that limited donor eligibility on perceived risks of contracting HIV/AIDs and other sexually transmitted infections.

June 16, 2021
|
By:
  • Jaclyn Diaz
The U.K. announced new rules for blood donation that are defined by individual behaviors, rather than sexuality and gender.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

U.K. Will Make It Easier For Gay And Bisexual Men To Donate Blood

"Donors will no longer be asked to declare if they have had sex with another man, making the criteria for blood donation gender neutral and more inclusive," the National Health Service explains.

December 14, 2020
|
By:
  • Laurel Wamsley

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