blood donor

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Red Cross Announces Emergency Blood Shortage, With a 'Super' Appeal

US humanitarian group is giving donors a chance to win Super Bowl trip if they roll up their sleeves

(Newser) - An emergency blood shortage has prompted the American Red Cross to make an appeal to all eligible donors: Please come in, roll up your sleeves, and give a little. On Sunday, the humanitarian aid group announced it's seeing the lowest number of US blood donors in two decades, and...

FDA Has a New Rule for Gay, Bisexual Blood Donors

Gay, bisexual men in monogamous relationships can now donate without abstaining from sex

(Newser) - Gay and bisexual men in monogamous relationships can give blood in the US without abstaining from sex under updated federal health guidelines that focus on donors' behavior, not their sexual orientation. The Food and Drug Administration guidelines finalized Thursday ease decades-old restrictions designed to protect the blood supply from HIV....

FDA to Make Big Move on Blood Donation Rules

No more automatic 3-month waiting for gay, bi men, per proposal

(Newser) - A big change looks to be coming to the Food & Drug Administration's long-criticized guidelines for blood donors as it relates to the LGBTQ community. Bloomberg reports that the agency is seeking to ease its restrictions on gay and bisexual men, who, under the current policy, have had to...

US Facing 'National Crisis' on Blood Supply

Red Cross is warning of 'severe blood shortage' around the nation

(Newser) - "Every two seconds, someone in the US needs blood," per the American Red Cross. Now, however, "crucial patient care" is getting pushed off thanks to what the group says is a "severe blood shortage" nationwide, per the New York Times . In a release issued June 14,...

Red Cross Move on Virus 'Completely Changes the Landscape'

Antibody test showing who's had COVID-19 could pinpoint potential plasma donors

(Newser) - The American Red Cross plans to begin offering antibody tests to potential donors who suspect they've recovered from the coronavirus, reports ABC News . The hope is that blood from people who've already recovered could be used to treat sick patients. Scientists don't know whether such blood actually...

Blood Donation Rules Changed—Likely for Good

New policy for gay men expected to stay in place

(Newser) - The US government Thursday eased restrictions on blood donations from gay men and other key groups because of a drop in the nation's blood supply triggered by the coronavirus outbreak. The Food and Drug Administration's new policy aims to allow tens of thousands more Americans to give blood,...

Can Your Rare Blood Save This Toddler With Cancer?
Wanted: 'Extremely
Rare Blood' for
Sick Toddler
in case you missed it
Dec 8, 2018 6:30 AM CST

Wanted: 'Extremely Rare Blood' for Sick Toddler

Donors for Florida girl need 'O' or 'A' blood type, with parents 100% Pakistani, Iranian, or Indian

(Newser) - A toddler in Florida has spurred a hunt for compatible blood donors, and the requirements are incredibly rigid. The little girl, identified as Zainab, 2, was diagnosed just a few weeks ago with neuroblastoma , a rare kind of blood cancer that typically only strikes children ages 5 and younger, WPLG...

Fla. Shooter May Have Donated Blood to His Own Victims

Omar Mateen had donated blood 2 weeks prior to shooting

(Newser) - On May 29, Omar Mateen donated blood at a OneBlood mobile blood drive. Two weeks later, he opened fire at Orlando's Pulse nightclub, killing dozens and injuring dozens more—and OneBlood provided much of the blood supply used to help the victims, ABC News reports. The donation center confirmed...

It's Outrageous That Gay Men Can't Donate Blood
It's Outrageous That Gay Men Can't Donate Blood
OPINION
Jun 13, 2016 12:03 PM CDT

It's Outrageous That Gay Men Can't Donate Blood

Nightclub massacre casts spotlight on FDA rules

(Newser) - In the wake of the Pulse Orlando massacre, many in the LGBT community want to do something to help victims and to remember the dozens of lives lost at the LGBT nightclub—but for many of those looking to help, donating blood is not an option. Though the FDA recently...

Want Free Music? Give Blood—in Transylvania

Romania tries unconventional way to draw blood from stony population

(Newser) - Romania is tapping into the Dracula legend, offering concert-goers free tickets in exchange for their blood. The campaign is part of a push to increase blood donations in a country where only 1.7% of the people donate blood. Adrian Chereji, marketing director for the UNTOLD Festival, said today the...

After Blood Transfusion, Boy Allergic to Peanuts

And fish, in 'extremely rare' case

(Newser) - An 8-year-old boy in Canada never had any problems eating salmon or peanuts. Then, within just a few weeks of getting a blood transfusion as part of his treatment for brain cancer, he ate salmon and experienced a severe allergic reaction within 10 minutes. The same thing happened when he...

FDA Lifting Lifetime Ban on Gay Men Donating Blood

But there will still be restrictions

(Newser) - The FDA announced today that it will lift its lifetime ban on blood donations from gay and bisexual men, the Los Angeles Times reports. Instead, men who have had sex with men will be allowed to donate blood one year after last having sexual contact with another man, the FDA...

What It's Like to Have the 'Golden' Blood Type

Rh-null patients face dangers, can be heroes

(Newser) - When it comes to blood types, you may know A, AB, B, and O—but those larger groups actually contain millions of different varieties. That's because the surface of our blood cells are coated with antigens—up to 342 of them. Whether you have certain ones determines your full...

Russian Lawmaker: Ban Gays From Giving Blood

But he offers free 'conversion therapy'

(Newser) - As a follow-up to Russia's internationally condemned anti-gay law, a senior lawmaker wants to bring back the country's ban on gay people giving blood. Mikhail Dyegtyaryov says the move would help stem the country's HIV/AIDS epidemic, reports Reuters , though experts say the vast majority of the country'...

Blood Donations Crash to 15-Year Low

Red Cross 50K units short in June

(Newser) - The American Red Cross is facing a blood donation shortage serious enough that some people may have to cancel elective surgeries. Donations are at their lowest in 15 years. In June, the organization came up 50,000 units short. July isn't looking good, either—a particular problem given the...

China Lets Lesbians Donate Blood Again

Gay men, too, but only if they're celibate

(Newser) - For the first time since 1998, lesbians can legally give blood in China. The ban, prompted by HIV and AIDS fears 14 years ago, also has been lifted on celibate gay men, though sexually active gay men are still barred from donating. A major Chinese lesbian activist applauded the move,...

Gay British Men Can Donate Blood, With One Catch...

...they have to have abstained from sex with other men for 10 years

(Newser) - In Britain, gay men will be allowed to donate blood for the first time, with just one catch: They can only donate if they haven’t had sex with another man in a decade. It was determined that the ban on gay men donating blood could be discriminatory, and the...

Poor? You Can Still Save the World

20 ways to make a charitable donation without emptying your wallet

(Newser) - Even if the Great Recession has left you without a lot of disposable income, you can still help make the world a better place. The Christian Science Monitor rounds up no- and low-budget ways you can help by donating:
  • Business attire: The clothes you're no longer wearing to the office
...

US May Allow Gay Men to Donate Blood Again

1985 ban out of date, advocates argue

(Newser) - A quarter-century after the US started barring gay men from donating blood, Department of Health and Human Services experts are deciding whether to lift the lifetime ban, HealthDay News reports. The policy was instituted in 1985, as public consciousness of HIV/AIDS grew. "There was good reason for it, based...

Dem Senators: Lift Ban on Gay Blood Donors

John Kerry leads group urging FDA to end 'discriminatory' policy

(Newser) - John Kerry and 17 other Senate Democrats are calling on the FDA to end the 27-year-old ban on blood donations by gay men. The policy barring any man who has had sex with another man since 1977 dates to the beginning of the AIDS epidemic. It “was once considered...

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