Red Cross Warns US Blood Shortage Jeopardizing Patient Care

Phlebotomist Loreto Valino (R) prepares to draw blood from the arm of Nora Turner as she donates blood at Vitalant blood donation center in San Francisco, California on Jan. 11, 2022. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

The United States is in a “dire” blood supply crisis and patients are suffering, so declared the American Red Cross (ARC) in an appeal to the nation for more blood donations.

ARC’s Jan. 11 statement said the “worst blood shortage in over a decade” is posing a “concerning risk to patient care.”