American Red Cross Cancels Blood Drives, Asks Donors to Make an Appointment

To mitigate the spread of the virus and reduce gatherings of large groups of people, the American Red Cross has canceled nearly 2,700 blood drives throughout the country. More than 80 percent of the blood the Red Cross collects come from donation drives, and these cancelations have resulted in some 86,000 fewer blood donations according to Ct.gov.

The Red Cross of Connecticut is asking people in the state to consider donating blood by calling ahead to one of their offices and scheduling an appointment that will allow them to encourage safe social distancing while still ensuring blood donations are being received.