U.S. Blood Donation Supply Safe From Covid-19, NIH Study Finds

Blood screening requirements appear to protect against donors transmitting the virus that causes Covid-19 during transfusions, a new study found.

The findings, which appeared Tuesday in the journal Transfusion, indicate the nation’s blood supply is safe during the pandemic. Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health said there’s no reason to change guidelines from the Food and Drug Administration, which don’t call for screening routine blood donations for Covid-19 but require donation centers to check individual donors for symptoms.

“This finding is good news for thousands of patients who may need a blood transfusion because of surgery or ...