Red Cross Declares Blood Supply Crisis, Metro Detroit Donors Turn Out at Local Drives

The American Red Cross has declared a national blood supply crisis for the second time this year, and Metro Detroit residents are responding with a wave of donations at local blood drives held in partnership with Gardner-White.

The organization said its national supply of O-positive blood, the type most commonly used in emergencies, fell to less than a day's worth. That level makes it difficult for hospitals and emergency rooms to keep up with patient needs, according to Jenn Serra with the American Red Cross.

"That's what the emergency rooms need to make sure patients' needs are met," Serra said. The one-day supply threshold is what triggered the crisis declaration, Serra said.

The Red Cross said summer is typically a hard stretch for blood collections. Vacations, travel schedules and other seasonal disruptions tend to thin out the pool of regular donors just as hospitals continue to need steady supplies for surgeries, trauma cases and ongoing treatments like cancer care.

In Metro Detroit, appointments at Red Cross donation sites in Taylor and Ann Arbor filled up as blood drives got underway this week, and organizers are pointing people toward additional dates for anyone who couldn't get a slot.

Peggy Martin, who has received blood transfusions herself in the past, said she felt compelled to give back after seeing how low the national supply had dropped.

"I've gotten blood transfusions before, but it's my turn to give," Martin said.

Martin said reports of the supply falling below a one-day reserve pushed her to act. Other donors described similar reasoning. Angela Stephenson, who also donates organs, said she sees blood donation as a low-cost way to help someone who may need it without warning.

"I'm an organ donor, and so I think it's important to give any way we can, because you never know if it's going to be you that's going to need it," Stephenson said.

The Red Cross and Gardner-White have lined up a series of drives across the region to keep momentum going. Thursday's schedule includes locations in Auburn Hills, Cadillac, Canton, Chesterfield Township, Howell, Saginaw, Shelby Township, Warren and Waterford, with donation windows running from 11:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. at each site.

As an incentive, the Red Cross is offering a $20 Amazon gift card to anyone who donates between now and Aug. 28. Donors can check appointment availability and sign up through the American Red Cross website or app.

This is the second time this year the Red Cross has issued a national blood supply crisis declaration. The designation is used when reserves drop low enough to threaten hospitals' ability to treat patients who need transfusions, including trauma victims, cancer patients and surgery patients.

The Red Cross says this pattern repeats most summers. Donations tend to slow as people travel and school schedules break up the routines that normally bring donors to community drives, blood banks and workplace collection events. When that slowdown coincides with steady or rising demand from hospitals, the gap can turn into a shortage fast.

Organizers in Metro Detroit are focused on keeping the current run of drives full and encouraging first-time donors to take part. Serra and other Red Cross staff have been directing walk-ins and appointment holders toward the Gardner-White locations running through the week, with more dates expected as the crisis designation remains in effect.

Anyone unable to make Thursday's drives can still schedule a donation through the Red Cross before the Aug. 28 gift card deadline.