Massachusetts hospitals develop plans to ration BLOOD as US suffers historic shortages

The U.S. is facing a ‘blood crisis’ during the COVID-19 pandemic, and some hospitals in Massachusetts are setting plans in place to start rationing if the need comes.

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Tufts Medical Center, both in Boston, are developing plans in case they run short on blood, reports WGBH.

Last month, the American Red Cross declared that the U.S. was facing a ‘blood crisis’ due to plummeting donation numbers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Because blood can not be stored for long periods of time, blood banks and hospitals require frequent donations to keep supplies up. Many health care providers have already been forced into a bind during the pandemic.