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Welcome, First Time Blood Donors

Why Donate Your Blood?

There are different reasons people decide to give blood, all of them important. In fact, in the time it takes you to read this, someone in the U.S. needs blood – EVERY 2 SECONDS of every day a patient receives a blood or platelet transfusion. And that blood can only come from volunteer donors like you.

Whatever your motivation, when you donate blood you are giving hope to hospital patients – and their family and friends. You’re making sure a child doesn’t grow up without a parent, a husband doesn’t become a widower, a young woman’s father can walk her down the aisle at her wedding, and many more.

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Sunnie started donating platelets because two dear friends were diagnosed with cancer.

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Howard was asked to donate at his workplace’s blood drive, and decided that helping others was the right thing to do.

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Blood donors saved Taylor’s life, so Taylor began donating to pay it forward.

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Learn more about blood donation

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The Benefits of Donating Blood

Did you know that when you give blood, there are benefits for you, too? We conduct a pre-donation screening that ensures your safety and the safety of the blood supply for patients – and as a bonus, provides you with valuable health information:

  • One donation can save up to 3 lives!
  • Find out your blood type.
  • Get a mini-physical: We take your temperature, pulse and blood pressure and check your hemoglobin level every time you come to donate.
  • We screen each completed donation for more than a dozen infectious diseases. If your donation tests positive, we will confidentially let you know.
  • Completed donations are checked for cholesterol levels. And occasionally we offer additional screenings such as COVID-19 antibodies.
  • All of this information is kept in your secure, private online donor account so you can easily reference it at any time.
  • Be sure to join our recognition program, you start receiving points for every donation you make, which can go toward free gift cards to your favorite restaurants and retailers. In addition, Vitalant periodically offers special thank-you gifts including gift cards, T-shirts and other giveaways.
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Why blood type matters

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Five reasons to donate blood

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Ready to schedule your blood donation?

Schedule your blood donation online today and save up to 3 lives.

How to Prepare and What to Expect When You Donate Blood

As a first-time donor, you probably have some questions about the process, what to expect, how to prepare and what we mean by types of donation. The links on the right can answer your questions.

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Blood Donation Process

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Types of Donations

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How Do You Know if You Can Donate?

In general, you can donate blood if you:

  • Are at least 18 years old (16 & 17 years old with parental permission); no upper age limit.
  • Weigh at least 110 pounds.
  • Are in good general health and feeling well the day of your donation.
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Basic Eligibility Requirements

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Additional Eligibility Requirements

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Additional Information

Our Vitalant blog is a great resource if you want to take a deeper dive into blood donation basics, blood types, donation myths and more, plus read inspiring stories about blood donors and recipients.

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Iron and Blood Donation

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Debunking Blood Donation Myths

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If you have questions or concerns not addressed here, please call our Customer Care Center at
877-25-VITAL (84825).

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Make appointments and access blood donation info wherever you go.

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