Red Cross declares an emergency blood shortage, as number of donors hits 20-year low

Tuyishimire Primitiva, phlebotomist with the American Red Cross, draws whole blood from Teresa McLeland at the American Red Cross on April 12, 2023, in Louisville, Ky. (Michael Swensen/Getty Images)

The American Red Cross announced that it is experiencing the lowest number of people giving blood in the last 20 years, in what the organization says is an emergency shortage.

In all, the Red Cross says that the number of people donating blood has dropped by 40% over the last two decades, and that the shortage could worsen in coming months if winter weather or seasonal respiratory illnesses like the flu or COVID-19 cause people to cancel their donation appointments.