COVID-19 and Blood Donation
Each year, millions of individuals rely on blood transfusions to treat acute care needs such as trauma as well as for ongoing disease management. The blood community's top priority is maintaining the safety and adequacy of the blood supply on behalf of these patients.
Vaccine misinformation has led some people to raise questions about COVID vaccines and blood donation. However, America's blood supply is safe and COVID vaccines do not transfer from a blood donor to a transfusion recipient.
Download PDF here
COVID Vaccine & Blood Donation
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) provides oversight of America's blood supply. All blood collectors in the United States are required to follow FDA guidelines and regulations for the collection, manufacture, and distribution of blood components.
Yes. Every blood donation is required to undergo extensive infectious disease testing before it is distributed to a hospital.
Yes. The FDA explicitly allows donors who have recently received approved or authorized COVID vaccines to give blood as long as they are healthy on the day of donation and meet all other eligibly criteria.
Yes. A long history of the use of non-live vaccines demonstrates that they pose no risk to a blood recipient and do not impact a recipient’s DNA and/or lead to a potential COVID-19 infection.
No. Four COVID-19 vaccines have been approved or authorized for use in the United States, including manufactured by Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, and Novavax. None of these approved vaccines are considered "live vaccines", meaning they are unable to replicate through blood.
No. None of the COVID-19 vaccines approved or authorized for use in the United States alter or interact with your DNA.
No. Research into mRNA vaccines has been going on for decades and this type of COVID vaccine has met stringent FDA standards for safety and effectiveness.
No. The COVID-19 vaccines approved or authorized for use in the United States are akin to tetanus, meningitis, and influenza vaccines in that they are all “non-live vaccines” unable to replicate through blood
No. The COVID-19 vaccines approved or authorized for use in the United States are unable to replicate through blood.
Since COVID and/or vaccine components are not transmitted through blood, the FDA does not recommend that blood centers collect or share the vaccine status of blood donors.
No. Blood collection centers do not collect vaccination status information and do not include vaccinated status information on the label of blood products. The labeling of blood products contains only information deemed necessary by the FDA to ensure the safety of patients and our nation’s blood supply. It does not contain any demographic information of the blood donor
No. Hospitals do not have access to a blood donor’s vaccination status and cannot provide that information to patients