Urge action to expand the use of blood in ambulances, strengthen the cyber resilience of the blood community, and cut red tape to support the safety & availability of the blood supply
Washington, DC – Over 100 leading organizations from across the nation have united to kick off Blood Advocacy Week 2025, calling on Members of Congress to take decisive action in supporting the blood supply as a national priority. The joint letter to Congress is available here. Blood Advocacy Week, an annual initiative led by America’s Blood Centers, unites stakeholders to advocate for policies that highlight the importance of blood for patients, communities, and the healthcare system.
“As we enter Blood Advocacy Week 2025, over 100 organizations are joining forces to urge action in support of our nation’s blood supply. We encourage you to prioritize our nation’s blood supply and take key steps to ensure that blood is always available for every patient in need,” wrote the organizations to Speaker Mike Johnson, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Majority Leader John Thune, and Minority Leader Charles Schumer.
The letter urges Congress to:
- Expand the use of blood on ambulances by supporting report language to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to update TRICARE payment policy to remove financial barriers and allow for broader adoption of prehospital blood transfusions, supporting TRICARE’s mission to improve the health of the military and their families which, in turn, helps support the security of the United States.
- Strengthen the cyber resilience of the blood community by supporting robust funding for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and ensure blood centers are considered in efforts to ensure health care information technology infrastructure is strengthened to prevent potential attacks.
- Cut red tape to support the safety and availability of the blood supply by streamlining licensure for new donation sites, modernizing testing requirements to match modern testing technology, maximizing platelet donations that can be used for patient care, and increasing plasma regulation flexibility.
Blood transfusion remains one of the most common hospital procedures, with patients requiring a blood transfusion every two seconds. More than 42,000 units of red blood cells, platelets, and plasma are used by patients every day. These blood transfusions are needed to treat patients with acute care needs such as trauma and blood loss during childbirth, as well as for disease management for patients with a variety of health conditions, including cancer, inherited blood disorders, cardiovascular and orthopedic surgeries, and organ and bone marrow transplants.
Partners taking part in Blood Advocacy Week include the American Society of Hematology, American Society for Clinical Pathology, Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives, American Trauma Society, BorderRAC, Centerlink, Cerus, Civil Air Patrol, the Crescent Foundation, Colorado Whole Blood Coalition, Delcon, Elks, FCI Brands, Georgia Health Policy Center, GLAAD, GoodLabs, Human Rights Campaign, HOSA Future Health Professionals, Incept Health, International Trauma Life Support, Johnson and Johnson, La Boit Specialty Vehicles Inc., LifeFactors, LifeFlow, Macopharma, National Bleeding Disorders Foundation, North Arundel County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated, Operation Pulse Lift, Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency International Alliance, SaveLivez, Sickle Cell Foundation of Minnesota, Sick Cells, South Texas Regional Advisory Council, Thalassemia International Federation, Terumo Blood and Cell Technlologies, The Institute for Health Research & Policy at Whitman-Walker, Trauma Survivors Network, University Blood Initiative and University Hospital EMS in Newark, New Jersey.
These organizations are joined by community blood centers and blood organizations across the country, including ADRP: The Association for Blood Donor Professionals, Alliance for Community Transfusion Services (ACTS), Blood Assurance, Blood Bank of Alaska, Blood Bank of Delmarva, Blood Bank of Hawaii, Blood Centers of America, Bloodworks Northwest, Carter BloodCare, Central California Blood Center, Central Pennsylvania Blood Bank, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Coastal Bend Blood Center, Community Blood Bank, Community Blood Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania & Western New York, Community Blood Center, Community Blood Center (Appleton), Community Blood Center of the Ozarks, Connecticut Blood Center, ConnectLife, Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center, Héma-Québec, Houchin Community Blood Bank, Hoxworth Blood Center, ImpactLife, Inova Blood Donor Services, Kentucky Blood Center, LIFELINE Blood Services, LifeServe Blood Center, LifeShare Blood Center, LifeSouth Community Blood Centers, LifeStream, MEDIC Regional Blood Center, Memorial Blood Centers, Miller-Keystone Blood Center, Mississippi Blood Services, National Blood Testing Cooperative, Nebraska Community Blood Bank, New Jersey Blood Services, New York Blood Center, Northern California Community Blood Bank, OneBlood, Our Blood Institute, Rhode Island Blood Center, Rock River Valley Blood Center, San Diego Blood Bank, Shepeard Community Blood Center, South Texas Blood & Tissue, Stanford Blood Center, SunCoast Blood Centers, Texoma Regional Blood Center, The Blood Center (New Orleans), The Blood Connection, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, UCI Health Blood Donor Center, Versiti, Vitalant, We Are Blood, and Western Kentucky Regional Blood Center.
Sponsors of this week include Abbott, Cerus, Fresenius Kabi, Grifols, Healthcare-ID, Hemanext, Macopharma, Roche, and Terumo Blood and Cell Technologies.
Founded in 1962, America’s Blood Centers is the national organization bringing together community-based, independent blood centers. Its member organizations operate more than 600 blood collection sites providing close to 60 percent of the U.S., and a quarter of the Canadian, blood supply. These blood centers serve more than 150 million people and provide blood products and services to more than 3,500 hospitals and healthcare facilities across North America. All ABC U.S. members are licensed and regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. For more information, visit www.AmericasBlood.org.
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