During the holidays, people give gifts and spend time with family, and blood donations continue to play an important role as the need significantly increases.

The season regularly brings a decline in blood donations, according to local blood donation centers.

Rising need for blood as people head home for the holidays

For example, in 2024, just after the new year, the American Red Cross declared an emergency blood shortage, stating it was experiencing “ the lowest number of people giving blood in the last 20 years.”

Kristin Paltzer, senior manager of public relations for Versiti Blood Center , explained that the holiday decline can be attributed to a variety of factors, including people traveling home for the holidays and a lack of blood drives during this period.

“A lot of peo

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