Reference Source

Cold, Flu — can I give blood? (American Red Cross (US))

What is the waiting period for Cold, Flu — can I give blood? (American Red Cross (US))?

For Cold, Flu, waiting period is until symptoms resolve; condition is wait if you have a fever or a productive cough; wait until you have completed antibiotic treatment for sinus, throat or lung infection; outcome is temporary deferral; blood service is American Red Cross (US), recorded from its source on 2026-08-06.

Wait if you have a fever or a productive cough (bringing up phlegm). Wait if you do not feel well on the day of donation. Wait until you have completed antibiotic treatment for sinus, throat or lung infection.

redcrossblood.org, retrieved 2026-08-06

until symptoms resolve
How long you must wait before donating (or the age/weight bound), exactly as this blood service prints it — the passage it comes from is quoted on the record page. National services genuinely disagree on the same criterion; check the service you would donate with.
Sourceredcrossblood.org
Verified
Review by
DatasetBlood donor deferral criteria compared across national blood services
Criterion
Cold, Flu
Blood service
American Red Cross (US) our reading
Waiting period
until symptoms resolve
Condition
wait if you have a fever or a productive cough; wait until you have completed antibiotic treatment for sinus, throat or lung infection
Outcome
temporary deferral our reading

Values marked our reading are our classification of what the source says — the source does not print them in those words. The quote below is the evidence for each one; judge it yourself.

Source

Last verified against source: . Due for re-check by . This page as Markdown · OKF bundle · full dataset as JSON.

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