Washington, DC – More than 80 prominent organizations from around the country have joined forces to thank America’s blood donors ahead of World Blood Donor Day on Friday, June 14th and encourage Congressional action to expand and diversify the nation’s donor base. These organizations are working together during Blood Advocacy Week to champion policies that encourage blood donation and promote equitable access to blood products, ensuring that all patients can receive the life-saving transfusions they need when they need them. To learn more, visit www.BloodAdvocacyWeek.org.
“We are proud to bring together a group of more than 80 diverse organizations this World Blood Donor Day to recognize the roughly 7 million Americans who selflessly donate blood every year. As Blood Advocacy Week continues, we also encourage policymakers to make blood donation a national priority. By strengthening and diversifying the donor base, we can ensure that all patients can receive a life-saving transfusion when it’s needed the most,” said Kate Fry, CEO of America’s Blood Centers.
World Blood Donor Day is an annual global event dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of safe blood donations and expressing gratitude to voluntary blood donors for their life-saving contributions. To learn more, click here.
Blood Advocacy Week is an initiative of America’s Blood Centers that brings together members of the blood community, legislators, agency decisionmakers, advocates, providers, patients, and more to learn about and advance policies that promote the value of blood to patients, communities, and our healthcare system. As part of this work, these organizations are asking Congress to provide targeted federal funding to increase awareness about blood donation eligibilty, expand access to pre-hospital blood transfusions, and enhance palliative care transfusion reimbursement.
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.
The nation’s blood supply is facing challenges due to declining numbers of blood donors, particularly among younger age groups and communities of color. Currently, over 60% of blood donations come from individuals over 40, highlighting the need to engage younger generations. Donation rates from individuals aged 16-24 saw significant declines between 2019 and 2021, emphasizing the importance of expanding the donor pool. It is essential to expand the pool of younger donors to ensure a stable and diverse blood supply, which is critical to patient care.
Partners taking part in Blood Advocacy Week include AABB (Association for the Advancement of Blood & Biotherapies), American Society of Hematology, American Society for Clinical Pathology, Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives, Body Interact, Centerlink, Cerus, Civil Air Patrol, the Crescent Foundation, Elks, Georgia Health Policy Center, GLAAD, Human Rights Campaign, HOSA Future Health Professionals, Johnson and Johnson, Lantana Consulting Group, LifeFactors, Macopharma, National Bleeding Disorders Foundation, North Arundel County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated, Operation Pulse Lift, QinFlow, Sickle Cell Foundation of Minnesota, Sick Cells, Thalassemia International Federation, Terumo, the Thrive with Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency Organization, University Blood Initiative, and Whitman-Walker Health.
These organizations are joined by community blood centers and blood organizations across the country, including 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 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, 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, Solvita, 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.
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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