Alex Vance (L) speaks with medical assistant Lydia Rezene as he donates blood at Bloodworks Northwest on March 17, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. Schools provide 25 percent of local blood donations and their closing due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has officials worried the region could see a shortage. (Photo by Karen Ducey/Getty Images)
Americans capable, willing, and able to donate blood are encouraged to do so during an era of social distancing.
"Social distancing doesn't have to mean social disengagement," U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams said during the Coronavirus Task Force briefing on Thursday, warning of blood shortages.
American Red Cross Senior Vice President Paul Sullivan told Cheddar he's concerned about an already low blood supply in the U.S., compounded by a recent wave of coronavirus-inspired blood drive cancellations, numbering more than 5,000 drives resulting in some 170,000 fewer donations.
Sullivan said he still plans to continue donating.
However, the Red Cross is changing its normal precautions in response to coronavirus concerns. Sullivan told Cheddar those new precautions include temperature checks before entering the donation space and changing gloves between each collection.
Surgeon General Adams also explained beds are six feet apart and staff members are disinfecting surfaces more often.
"So give blood today. You'll feel good about it, and you'll be helping your country and community during this crisis. And you might even save a life," he said.
Red blood cells only have a shelf life of 42 days and platelets just 5 days, so blood donations must continue in order to continue vital medical procedures to keep people alive.
"As this progresses, the way it will challenge our healthcare system … it will be just that — it will be very challenging," Sullivan warned. "No one gets a transfusion if they don't need it. We don't want to put the medical community in a situation where they have to pick who gets blood and who doesn't."
This year on Black Friday, the National Basketball Players Association launched a traveling NBPA-branded holiday pop-up called 'NBPA 450 Gives.' This was a 14-day long experiential and digital activation showcasing the best gifts for this holiday season, featuring items from black-owned businesses to celebrate Google's black-owned Friday initiative. JD sat down with Brooklyn Nets player, Blake Griffin, who helped launch this initiative.
The one-hour special 'Cannabiz: Legalization Goes Mainstream' explores the state of marijuana. Cheddar News is joined by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Village CEO Dan Pettigrew, and many more.
Bitcoin is still struggling to hold $47,000 and is well off from the near $68,000 high it saw in November. As the Federal Open Market Committee wraps up its two-day monetary policy meeting, some crypto investors are worried as they wait for news on policy. Shiv Madan, CEO of Moonwalk joins Cheddar News to discuss what's in store for the industry.
After becoming the must-have app in 2020, TikTok continues to be a dominant force in the music industry. According to TikTok's 2021 music report, 430 songs exceeded 1 billion video views on the platform this year, three times as many songs as last year. TikTok's music editorial lead, William Gruger, joined Cheddar News to discuss.
The Trevor Project released its latest extensive peer-revied study examining hormone therapy among transgender and nonbinary youth. The article is the first large-scale study to examine the relationship between receiving gender-affirming hormone therapy and rates of depression and suicide risk. Jonah DeChants, a lead research scientist for The Trevor Project, joined Cheddar News to discuss.
'And Just Like That' viewers we're left speechless after Carrie Bradshaw's 'Mr.Big' suffered a heart attack post-peloton ride and died in the show's premiere episode last week. This death by peloton caused a real-life hit to the company's stock, but it appears peloton has already bounced back. Tiffany Rolfe, R/GA's Global Chief Creative Officer, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
