Gave Blood Today

There's apparently a blood shortage, because many blood drives have been canceled, so I thought now was an especially good time.

Quite a few other donors apparently took the same view, and were there, too.

Comments

[Rev. Arthur L. Kirkland]

Admirable beyond words.

[Brett Bellmore]

I've got a few weeks before I can donate again, I donated back in February. But it's absolutely on my to-do list as soon as I'm qualified again.

[arbirary aardvark]

EV, if you give a man a fish he eats for a day. If you use your blog to advocate the legalization of the sale of fish, he could eat for a lifetime. Do you have opinions about whether it should be legal to sell blood? On the one hand, quantity would go up. On another hand, there are concerns about quality, since for example drug addicts might lie and sell HIV contaminated blood.

[Brett Bellmore]

For all practical purposes it IS legal to buy blood at this point. You can get paid quite well for plasma donations, and even the blood donations usually result in you getting some sort of gift card.

[Doug Huffman]

Only since 2015 have MSM within the year been deferred. Prior, HIV/AIDS was welcome.

I am an extreme volume equivalent platelet donor, now refused for lack of infrastructure and too common A+.

For those that can tolerate ARC politics, kudos.

[M L]

People get like 50 bucks or something to go in and donate plasma. Poor college students were doing this as long ago as 2005, I know for a fact.

[Detroit Linguist]

Stupid Red Cross regulations forbid me from giving blood because I lived in Scotland for six months in 1994 (yes the regulation is still in force, Because Mad Cow Disease--yup--they think I may have it) I checked on Sunday. And, of course, if you're gay you're also forbidden. Because AIDS, of course. 🙁

[Brett Bellmore]

I was in a similar position due to lymphoma back in 2010, but they just recently started letting me donate red blood cells.

Silly to have stopped me in the first place: I'd have been dead inside 6 months if the cancer hadn't been completely cured. And according to my oncologist the treatment actually reduced my chances of leukemia below average.

[regexp]

And, of course, if you’re gay you’re also forbidden. Because AIDS, of course

The rule is if you are male and had sex with another male within the last year. In most other countries its 3 months and covers anyone who had risky sex.

[Wachaza]

Passed out both times I tried to give blood. The Red Cross told me never grace their tables again.

[JHR]

That's at least a socially acceptable way to get out of the house.

[KenveeB]

I keep hearing that's a good way to help, but I can't give blood because I lived in England during the Mad Cow scare. :\ Thanks for doing your part!

[Kirk]

I've been a donor for many years (close to 10 gallons), and because I have O- and CMV- my blood is especially useful. But because I spent a week in Mumbai in winter, I'm disqualified for a year on the change that I might have gotten malaria. Since there's no test for it that's 100%, I can see the CDC's reasoning in normal times. Whether this time is of sufficient necessity to alter the rules is a question to be asked.