Cincinnati blood supplier issues urgent call for donors as supply dips
Photo: City of Bloomington, Minnesota (bloomingtonmn.gov)The only blood provider for more than 30 Cincinnati-area hospitals is calling for urgent donations after a dip in the blood supply. Hoxworth Blood Center, the University of Cincinnati-affiliated blood bank serving Southwest Ohio, Northern Kentucky and southeast Indiana, says hospitals are bracing for potential supply issues.
The shortage has not yet affected patient care, Hoxworth said, but the lab has been getting more calls from area hospitals requesting extra blood for emergencies — and has not always been able to fill those orders quickly. The Health Collaborative, speaking for regional hospitals, said hospitals are aware of an O-negative red blood cell shortage and have protocols in place to reserve that universal blood type for the most urgent patients.
If the situation gets worse, non-emergent surgeries and regular transfusions for patients could be delayed, said Ashley Smith, Hoxworth's public information officer. Local donors have been slow to return in recent months, and Hoxworth may have to lean on community partners in Dayton and Illinois if it runs short on certain blood types.
Dr. Bentley Rodrigue, transfusion service medical director at UC Medical Center, said the best response is to donate before an emergency arrives. Hoxworth is urging people in the community to roll up their sleeves — especially those with O-positive and O-negative blood types. The push comes as the American Red Cross has declared its second national blood supply crisis in a matter of months, in July 2026.
Sources: Cincinnati Enquirer (Oct 22, 2026); Hoxworth Blood Center (Oct 22, 2026).
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