Blood Donor Center

Am I Eligible to Donate Blood?

As of March 19, 2024, the Children's National Blood Donor Center has implemented the new FDA guidance requiring an individual donor assessment (IDA) approach for donor screening process and new gender-inclusive questions for all individuals to determine blood donor eligibility.

Key changes:

All blood donors, regardless of gender or sexual orientation, will be asked if they have had new and/or multiple sexual partners in the past three months.
If they answer no to both questions, there is no risk of a newly acquired transfusion-transmitted infection. They will not be asked about the type of sexual contact and will move on to the next question.
If they answer yes to either, there is some risk of a newly acquired transfusion-transmitted infection. Therefore, they will then be asked if they’ve had anal sex with any of these partners. If they have, they will be required to wait three months from when they most recently had anal sex to donate.
If they have not had anal sex with a new and/or multiple partners and meet all other eligibility criteria, they will be able to donate.
Asking about anal sex in the context of new or multiple recent partners allows blood collectors to more precisely and reliably identify those who may have an increased risk of a newly acquired transfusion-transmissible infection.

Learn how these new eligibility criteria were informed by research.

COVID 19 vaccination: There is no waiting period after receiving a vaccine against COVID-19. Some people may have soreness, chills, low-grade fever and/or muscle aches after the shot. This is normal and is due to the immune system recognizing the vaccine. If you have symptoms, please wait until you have fully recovered before donating blood.

Notice for platelet donors: Effective June 22, 2021, donors who have had a splenectomy (spleen removal) will not be eligible to donate platelets on our apheresis instruments (Trima Accel) due to a software change.

We recommend checking the further eligibility criteria page for more information prior to making an appointment. We remain incredibly grateful to donors and prospective donors of all ages and backgrounds who understand the importance of life-saving blood donations and welcome them to our center.

Below is a brief overview of common temporary or permanent reasons that may prevent blood donation.

Eligibility

If you are eligible, call 202-476-KIDS to schedule an appointment to donate blood today.

Eligible

In order to donate blood you must meet these preliminary requirements:

Healthy and feeling well
Able to consume a full meal
Weigh more than 110 lbs

In order to donate platelets, you must meet these requirements and also not have taken aspirin with the past 2 days (48 hours). If you are unsure about eligibility, please read further eligibility criteria or call the Blood Donor Center at 202-476-5437.

Temporarily Ineligible

Permanently Ineligible

Possibly Ineligible

We recommend calling the Blood Donor Center for more information

If you had shots or vaccinations in the past 8 weeks.
If you have had a new sexual partner or had multiple sexual partners in the past 3 months.
If you have had a tattoo or ear/body piercing in the last 3 months. Note that this requirement varies by state. You must wait 3 months after obtaining a tattoo in Maryland, Pennsylvania or Washington, D.C. but there is no waiting period for Virginia and West Virginia as long as the tattoo site has healed properly.
If you had a major illness in the past 6 months.
If you traveled outside the U.S. or Canada in the past 3 years.
If you are taking other medications for chronic medical conditions.
If you are eligible, schedule an appointment to donate blood today.

If you are eligible, schedule an appointment to donate blood today.