Younger generations are not filling the gap left behind by aging blood donors.
Iowa’s main blood center, LifeServe, is becoming increasingly concerned about the lack of donors stepping up — without enough donations, hospitals edge closer to the point where they’ll run out of supplies to perform blood transfusions.
The number of blood donors under the age of 30 has dropped 50% nationwide since 2015, said LifeServe Marketing Director Tim Paluch. Just 23% of donors in 2025 were under 40.
In Iowa, it would be “a real struggle” for LifeServe to provide enough blood if a major trauma event were to happen.
As of June 1, LifeServe had five blood types with less than a two-day supply, Paluch said. Hospitals typically want to have a four-to-five day supply for each blood type on hand.
“It’s a community issue because our blood is saved in the communities where we donate,” Paluch said.
The Nebraska Community Blood Bank declared a blood emergency after patients needed more blood than they had on hand, 1011 Now reported on May 26.
Paluch said LifeServe is not yet at that emergency level, but that Iowa is dangerously close to the point where hospitals would run out of blood if there were a sudden demand for it.
Why are blood centers nationwide seeing blood donor shortages?
The COVID shutdown changed the way people show up to school and work. Blood drives previously relied on dozens of trucks stationed outside of businesses and schools. With more people working from home, it becomes more difficult to get people to deviate from their routine for a donation, Paluch said.
“Every unit is a patient. Every unit is a life. Every unit is a family dealing with the potentially the worst tragedy of their lives,” Paluch said.
Paluch said the downward trend is especially concerning as the summer is coming up, which is also known as “trauma season.” As people become more active with the nicer weather, the more that people get into accidents. Blood supply also goes down because they can’t rely on high school blood drives to replenish the inventory.
How can I donate blood in Iowa?
LifeServe is offering Blood Donor Day promotions throughout June. Every donor receives a T-shirt, a chance to win prizes from local businesses, as well as a chance to win four-day passes to the Hinterland Music Festival.
People can schedule an appointment to donate blood via the LifeServe website.
In Iowa City, Cedar Rapids and some other eastern Iowa communities, ImpactLife also accepts appointments online.
Lucia Cheng is a service and trending reporter at the Des Moines Register. Contact her at lcheng@gannett.com or 515-284-8132.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Fewer young blood donors push Iowa supply toward danger levels
Reporting by Lucia Cheng, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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