March 24, 2023

Photo: HPD Commissioner Adolfo Carrión Jr. donates blood as part of the agency’s blood drive on March 24.

New York, NY – In the midst of a blood emergency, the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) held a blood drive with the New York Blood Center (NYBC) at their downtown Manhattan office today. HPD Commissioner Adolfo Carrión Jr. was among the first to give blood this morning to help reach the agency’s goal of 45 lifesaving donations by the end of the day. 

“Affordable housing is the lifeblood of our city – so it’s no surprise that our team at HPD wants to step up and help solve the blood shortage by donating,” said Commissioner Carrión. “As New York City’s housing agency, protecting the health and safety of New Yorkers just runs in our veins.”  

Earlier this month, the NYBC declared the first blood emergency of 2023. In February, the New York Blood Center and its divisions across the nation received 6,000 fewer blood donations than the year prior, and blood donations are 12% below hospital and patient needs.  

“We are enormously grateful to the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development for their longstanding support of the blood supply,” said Christine Foran, Director of Corporate and Community Events. “When we put out the call for more blood drives, they answered. As the blood emergency continues, we urge all New Yorkers who are healthy and able to make a blood donation today.” 

HPD answered NYBC’s call with today’s blood drive, aiming to reach 45 donations through today’s efforts. However, the agency is no stranger to NYBC, regularly hosting blood drives with NYBC whenever there is a blood emergency. The agency has 54 current staffers who have given 8 or more pints of blood during their time at HPD, including one employee who has made 90 donations. In 2022, HPD employees donated over 171 pints of blood, helping over 500 patients in area hospitals.   

The number of blood donations still are not back to pre-pandemic levels. Compounding the problem is a continued lag in first-time and youth donors, which remain about half of pre-pandemic levels.  And while New Yorkers are returning to in-person work, office and community blood drives and visits to NYBC Donor Centers are significantly down.  People working from home had an easier time donating in our donor centers, but we’re seeing a dramatic decrease at our centers. 

In addition to whole blood donors, platelet donors are urgently needed. With a shelf life of just 7 days, NYBC relies on dedicated platelet donors to help patients undergoing chemotherapy, those with bleeding disorders, new mothers, and more. 

Blood donors can give every 56 days, and platelet donors can give twice per month. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently lifted eligibility restrictions for individuals who lived in Europe during certain periods of time. To view current eligibility guidelines, visit nybc.org or call 800.688.0900.  

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The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) promotes quality and affordability in the city's housing, and diversity and strength in the city’s neighborhoods - because every New Yorker deserves a safe, affordable place to live in a neighborhood they love. We maintain building and resident safety and health, create opportunities for New Yorkers through housing affordability, and engage New Yorkers to build and sustain neighborhood strength and diversity. HPD is entrusted with fulfilling these objectives through the goals and strategies of Housing Our Neighbors: A Blueprint for Housing and Homelessness, Mayor Adams’ comprehensive housing framework. To learn more about what we do, visit nyc.gov/hpd and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @NYCHousing. 

New York Blood Center Enterprises/New York Blood Center was founded in 1964, New York Blood Center Enterprises (NYBCe) is one of the largest nonprofit, independent, community blood centers in the world. Along with partner organizations Blood Bank of Delmarva (BBD), Community Blood Center of Kansas City (CBC), Connecticut Blood Center (CTBC), Memorial Blood Centers (MBC), Nebraska Community Blood Bank (NCBB), and Rhode Island Blood Center (RIBC), we collect approximately 4,000 units of blood products each day and serve communities approaching 50 million people in the tri-state area (NY, NJ, CT), mid-Atlantic area (PA, DE, MD), Kansas City metropolitan area, Minnesota, Nebraska, Rhode Island, and Southern New England. NYBCe delivers lifesaving blood products and services as well as clinical, medical, pharmaceutical, testing, and consultative services to over 600 hospitals and dozens of research organizations, academic institutions, and biomedical companies. Among other milestones, our Lindsley F. Kimball Research Institute pioneered the Hepatitis B vaccine and patented a solvent detergent plasma process, innovating blood-purification technology worldwide.