A blood drive will be held at the American Legion Ronald Reagan-Palisades Post 283, 15247 La Cruz, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, February 23.
Healthy donors are needed, and appointments are required so that social distancing can be accomplished. Log onto www.redcrossblood.org and when prompted for the sponsor name, enter “Post283” or contact a Red Cross Representative at (800) 733-2767.
To thank you for donating, a $5 Amazon gift card will be sent by email. Visit: rcblood.org/together. To make a blood donation, you must be 16 years old and weigh at least 110 pounds. All types of blood — A, B and O — are sought.
According to Advancing Transfusion and Cellular Therapies, “In one hour’s time, a person can donate one unit of blood that can be separated into four individual components that could help save multiple lives.
“From one unit of blood, red blood cells can be extracted for use in trauma or surgical patients. Plasma, the liquid part of blood, is administered to patients with clotting problems. The third component of blood, platelets, clot the blood when cuts or other open wounds occur, and are often used in cancer and transplant patients. Cryoprecipitated anti-hemophilic factor (AHF) is also used for clotting factors.”
According to the American Red Cross site regarding eligibility, if you have received the Covid-19 vaccine, it is acceptable to give blood if you were vaccinated with a non-replicating, inactivated or RNA-based Covid-19 manufactured by Moderna or Pfizer, providing you are symptom- and fever-free.
The Red Cross asks residents to wait two weeks if they were vaccinated with a live attenuated Covid-19 vaccine (visit: https://www.redcrossblood.org/faq.html#eligibility-medications).