S.

Increasing day by day, so does a possible threat to the nation's blood supply to help us understand the potential blood shortages.

And how we can help is Gail McGovern, CEO and president of the American Red Cross.

She joins us now from Washington D.

C.

Thank you so much for being with us, Gale.

We know that the Corona virus has forced thousands of blood drives to cancel here in the United States to talk about what the overall impact has then been on blood donations.

Well, first of all, thank you so much for having me on the show to get the word out.

Uh, we do a lot of blood dries that businesses at college campuses, churches and, as you know, these institutions air shutting down.

And so we are facing a shortage.

About 5000 blood drives have been canceled, and that equates to about 100 70,000 units of blood, and we are scrambling to get blood dries back on.

Our books were asking people that they're healthy to come donate blood.

We're urging them to come out because we don't want to see a blood shortage on top of the Corona virus crisis.

So we don't want another health crisis on top of this one.

Yes, certainly.

I want to hear from you what you're hearing from doctors and from hospitals across this country regarding their blood supply and talk about how the non Corona virus patients are now being impacted by the shortage.

Well, I'm short.

All of your viewers know someone that got a blood transfusion.

At some point, we need them for chemotherapy patients, for trauma patients for a person who had open heart surgery and the like.

And each of these kinds of surgeries require blood.

And we've told the hospital's please postpone elective surgery and they're doing that.

So we're providing about 75% of their orders.

And with the elective surgery off the table, we're still facing a shortage, and I can't even imagine what the hospitals will go through.

If the doctor has to make a decision, which critical patient is gonna get the next unit of blood?

Yeah, we don't want it.

Get to that point.

Certainly I know we've all been talking a lot about social distancing, physical distancing, but you say that should not affect people who can and would like to donate blood.

Can you talk about why you wouldn't be affected?

Because people are afraid to go out there afraid to stand in any kind of alliance, to talk about what precautions have been put in place?

Well, we put a lot of safety precautions in place.

First of all, every person that presents to donate were taking their temperature.

We're having the staff take their own temperature every day after each donation were wiping down the bed.

We have the donor's use hand sanitizer before, during and after the donation.

We're keeping the beds as far apart as possible.

We're trying to keep people in line, is far apart from each other as possible.

Were spacing out the donation so we don't get a lot of people coming in at once.

We're doing everything we possibly can to make it a safe environment.

All right?

Yeah, an important note to anyone who wants to help.

This is how you can help your local hospital needs your blood, and they are making it safe for you to do so.

Gail McGovern Thanks so much for joining us today.

We appreciate.

I had one sure thing.

Love them to go to our website, make an appointment.

And if they want to sponsor blood drive, they could do that on our website as well.

We have a wonderful app.

They can download and make appointments through that.

Or they can call our 800 number, which is 1 800 Red Cross.

All right.

So many ways to help Gale.

Thanks again.

We are wishing you the very best.

Thank you.

Hi, everyone.

George Stephanopoulos Here.

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