Three associations of doctors and health experts are issuing a warning on the country’s low blood supply.
In a statement issued Thursday, the American Hospital Association, the American Medical Association and American Nurses Association said “the severity and duration of this shortage could significantly jeopardize the ability of health care providers to meet the many urgent needs of our patients and communities.”
The shortage comes shortly after the American Red Cross called this the “worst blood shortage in over a decade.”
The three associations said the COVID-19 pandemic only added challenges to the blood supply shortage the United State was already facing and urged everyone to give blood if they can.
This comes shortly after the American Red Cross said it had “less than a one-day supply of critical blood types.”
The need has also renewed a call to lift restrictions that prevent many gay and bisexual men from donating blood.
Twenty-two U.S. Senators sent a letter asking the FDA "to quickly act on the best available science and update its outdated and discriminatory blood donor deferral policies."
The Red Cross and the American Medical Association have also previously urged the FDA to lift the restrictions. The Red Cross is currently conducting research, hoping it will help lead to changes in eligibility.
According to FDA policy, men who have sex with men have to remain celibate for three months before donating blood to prevent HIV transmission.
That restriction was shortened from 12 months when the pandemic began in 2020.