Blood donation frequently asked questions

How long does it take to donate blood?

• Whole blood donation takes about 45-60 minutes.
• Apheresis blood donation (double red cells, platelets, plasma) takes about 1 1/2-2 hours.

At Mayo Clinic donor centers, you'll have access to wireless internet, a television and movies during the donation process.

How often can I donate blood?

• The minimum donation frequency for whole blood donation in the United States is every 56 days. This donation frequency can vary among blood donation sites. At the Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Center in Rochester, Minnesota, for example, you can donate whole blood every 84 days. Talk with donor center staff about specific requirements.
• Plasma donors may donate as often as every 28 days in the United States.
• Platelet donors may donate as often as every eight days, and up to 24 times in a 12-month period in the United States.
• Double red cell donors may donate as often as every 112 days in the United States. At the Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Center in Rochester, Minnesota, you may be able to give a double red cell donation every 168 days.

The Blood Donor Program welcomes regular and repeat healthy donors so that it has a steady blood supply for people in need. By starting to give when you are young and donating throughout your life, you may save thousands of lives.

At what age can I start donating blood?

To donate blood, you must be at least 16 or 17 years old, depending on the law in your state. In Minnesota, eligible 16-year-olds can donate blood. Donors must have the consent of a parent or guardian and weigh at least 110 pounds (about 50 kilograms). During the appointment, donors will complete a brief health questionnaire with a Mayo Clinic health care professional to make sure blood donation is safe for both the donor and the recipient of the blood.

Before donation, a parent or guardian must review and sign the following form to allow an eligible 16-year-old to donate:

• Blood Donation Consent for Minors. This form is required before each donation.
• Authorization to Release Protected Health Information. This form is required one time between the ages of 16 and 17 and one time after the donor reaches age 18.

These required donation forms are available by any one of the following means:

• Click on links above and printing the forms.
• Email donateblood@mayo.edu.
• Call the Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Program at 507-284-4475.
• Obtain copies at one of the donation center locations or a mobile blood drive.

Can I donate blood?

To donate blood, you must weigh at least 110 pounds (about 50 kilograms) and be at least 16 or 17 years old, depending on the law in your state. Some states allow legal minors to donate with parental permission. You must be in good health and able to pass the physical and a confidential health-history assessment to help make sure blood donation is safe for both you and the recipient of the blood.

Can I donate if I have a cold, flu or fever?

No. To donate, you must be symptom-free from cold, flu or fever on the day of donation.

Can I donate blood if I've tested positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)?

The Food and Drug Administration suggests waiting to donate blood for at least 10 days after a positive diagnostic test for COVID-19 without symptoms or for at least 10 days after symptoms of COVID-19 have completely cleared up. Those who have tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies but didn't have a diagnostic test and never developed symptoms can donate without a waiting period or having a diagnostic test done.

The Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Program doesn't test blood donors for the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Can I donate blood if I have traveled outside the United States recently?

Travel to some countries may make you ineligible to donate blood for varying periods of time, depending on whether certain diseases, such as malaria, are common in the country visited. The criteria concerning foreign travel are subject to change, so please discuss your eligibility with donor center staff.

Can I donate blood if I am under the care of a doctor or dentist?

You may be eligible to donate, depending on your condition. Donation is acceptable after routine teeth cleaning or dental work.

Can I donate blood if I am taking medicine?

Most medicines do not prevent you from donating blood. Common medicines do not affect your eligibility. Examples are blood pressure medicine, birth control pills and medicines you can get without a prescription. If you plan to donate platelets, you need to have stopped using aspirin or any aspirin-containing medicine 48 hours before your appointment. If you're taking antibiotics to treat a current infection, you must complete the course before donating. If you take a medicine to prevent contracting HIV (PrEP or PEP), you cannot donate blood for three months from your last dose if taken orally (by mouth) or for two years from your last does if taken by injection. For more information about other medicines, contact the Blood Donor Program.

Can I donate blood if I have recently had a vaccination?

You may donate blood after most vaccinations if you're feeling well. You'll have to wait to donate for two to four weeks after being vaccinated for chickenpox, measles, mumps, or rubella, or after receiving the oral polio vaccine.

Currently approved COVID-19 vaccinations in the United States do not require any wait time before donating blood.

Can I donate if I recently had a tattoo or ear or body piercing?

Getting a tattoo or piercing recently from a licensed establishment does not make you ineligible to donate blood.

What are other situations or conditions that make people ineligible to donate blood?

Some people are at high risk of bloodborne infections, which makes them ineligible to donate blood. These high-risk groups include:

• Anyone who has used injected drugs, steroids or another substance not prescribed by a doctor in the past three months.
• Anyone who has had a new sexual partner in the past three months and had anal sexual intercourse in the past three months.
• Anyone who has had multiple sexual partners in the past three months and had anal sexual intercourse in the past three months.
• Anyone who has a congenital coagulation factor deficiency.
• Anyone who has had a positive test for HIV.
• Anyone who has engaged in sex for money or drugs in the past three months.
• Anyone who in the past 3 months has had close contact with a person who has hepatitis B or hepatitis C. Close contact means you have lived with or had sexual contact with that person.
• Anyone who has had babesiosis, a rare and severe tick-borne disease in the past 2 years.
• Anyone who has taken the psoriasis medicine etretinate (Tegison), which has been discontinued in the U.S.

How is my health information protected?

Your medical record is viewed only as needed by Mayo Clinic Blood Program nurses and physicians. Before you donate blood, you must sign an Authorization to Release Protected Health Information. Eligible 16- and 17-year-old donors will need to have a parent or guardian sign their forms. If you have questions about protecting the privacy of your health information, please contact the Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Program.

How do blood donations help with the nationwide blood shortage?

The Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Program and other blood donor centers all experience the effects when there is a nationwide blood shortage. A simple blood donation can save the life of a child with leukemia, restore the strength of a cancer patient or provide a critical transfusion to an accident victim. We encourage you to make an appointment to donate blood at the Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Program to help overcome the severe blood shortage.

How else do blood donations help?

When you donate blood, you're helping others and giving back to your community. Donated blood benefits people in local hospitals who need blood transfusions. Each whole blood donation may help as many as three people. Donated blood helps meet many medical needs, including those of people who have lost blood due to trauma, an organ transplant or other major surgery, as well as those who cannot make enough blood on their own due to illness or treatment.

Can blood be manufactured?

There is no substitute for human blood — all transfusions use blood from a donor. The inventory of donated blood must be constantly replenished. Donated platelets can be stored for use for as long as 5 days. Donated red blood cells can be stored for use for up to 42 days.

What are the benefits for me as a blood donor?

• The blood drives and the blood donor locations on Mayo Clinic's campuses in Jacksonville, Florida, and Rochester, Minnesota, make it easy and convenient to donate blood.
• You'll receive a brief physical, which includes checking your temperature, blood pressure and pulse. You'll also be given a hemoglobin test.
• Both whole blood donation and apheresis are available, which gives you options as far as the length and frequency of your donations.
• The blood you donate will be tested to determine your blood type.

Can I donate blood for the purpose of infectious disease testing?

• Do not donate if you think you may be at risk for HIV or other infections.
• Do not donate if your purpose for donating is to obtain test results for HIV or other infections.
• Do not donate if your donation might harm the patient who receives your blood.
• For resources on infectious disease testing, please visit Olmsted County Public Health or your local public health department.

I'm afraid I'll faint when I see the needle or blood. Is there anything that I can do to prevent that from happening?

It's common to be nervous about donating blood if you've never done it before. Be assured that fainting before, during or after blood donation is rare. Staff members are skilled at making the experience as smooth as possible. It may help to not watch the needle as it is inserted, and you don't have to see the blood. While giving blood, you might access wireless internet or watch television or a movie to keep your mind occupied.

How can I prepare to donate blood?

Before donating, eat a healthy meal and drink plenty of water. Go to your donation appointment well rested and wearing a shirt with sleeves that can be rolled up above your elbows. Bring your donor card, driver's license or two other forms of ID.

How do whole blood donation and apheresis differ?

Blood contains several components, including red cells, platelets and plasma. During a whole blood donation, you typically donate a pint (about a half liter) of whole blood. During apheresis you're hooked up to a machine that collects and separates blood components and returns unused components to you. Apheresis takes up to two hours, which is longer than it takes to donate whole blood. With apheresis collection of plasma and platelets, you may be able to give more frequently than you can with whole blood donation.

In what situations do I need to contact the donor center after donating blood?

Contact the blood donor center or your doctor if you:

• Forgot to report any important health information.
• Have symptoms of an illness several days after your blood donation.
• Are diagnosed with COVID-19 within 48 hours after donating blood.