American Red Cross Issues Urgent Call for Blood Donations
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Hemera/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — The American Red Cross issued a call for blood donations this week, saying that donations are down eight percent in the last 11 weeks, creating thee risk of a shortfall of blood.
The Red Cross says that because Independence Day fell on a Friday, many sponsors did not host blood drives in early July, as people took long weekends off. An average summer week features about 4,400 Red Cross blood drives, compared to just 3,450 on the week of Independence Day this year.
In particular, the Red Cross says donors with blood types O negative, B negative and A negative are “especially needed.”
Since May, the organization has received 80,000 fewer donations than expected. As donations continue to decline, the Red Cross is concerned that it could experience an “emergency situation” within weeks.
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