Blood Donor Eligibility Information
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for establishing policies to ensure the safety of all donated blood products. Donor eligibility may also be determined at the discretion of the UNC Blood Donation Center medical director. Contact us via email or by phone at 984-974-8290 with any additional questions.
General Requirements
Donors must be at least 16 years old and weigh at least 110 lbs to be eligible. Donors who are 16- and 17-years-old must have a signed parental consent form with them on the day of donation.
Donors should feel well and healthy on the day of donation and free of infectious diseases, including colds.
Donation Intervals
Donors who have previously given any blood products must wait a specified period of time before they are eligible to donate platelets. Platelet donors cannot exceed 24 visits in a rolling 12-month period.
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Most recent donation
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Waiting period
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Single platelets
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48 hours
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Double & triple platelets
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7 days
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Whole blood
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7 days
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Double red cells
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16 weeks
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Medications
The majority of medications will not prohibit you from donating, but some require a waiting period before you are eligible to donate. These include certain medications for psoriasis, severe acne, hair loss, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV PrEP, and blood thinners. See the full list of medications here.
Antibiotics taken for an active infection must be completed prior to your donation.
Aspirin must be avoided for at least 48 hours prior to your donation. Other pain relievers, such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen, are acceptable.
Vaccinations
As long as you are symptom-free, there is no waiting period after vaccinations for COVID-19, HPV, influenza, shingles (SHINGRIX), or tetanus/Tdap.
Donors must wait 2 weeks after being vaccinated for measles (rubeola), mumps, tuberculosis, or yellow fever.
Donors must wait 4 weeks after being vaccinated for rubella, MMR, and chickenpox/varicella.
If you were vaccinated or came in close contact with someone who was vaccinated for smallpox, you must wait 8 weeks unless the JYNNEOS vaccine was administered.
Health Conditions
The most common deferral reason is anemia, or low red blood cells. Donors are encouraged to eat foods high in iron as well as vitamins B and C while avoiding caffeine when consuming those food items.
Certain health conditions such as heart disease, asthma, diabetes, or hypertension may be acceptable as long as they are well-controlled with no restrictions by your doctor.
Donors with a history of a blood cancer, such as leukemia or lymphoma, are permanently deferred. Donors with a history of certain other cancers may be eligible after successful remission and 12 months have passed since the last date of treatment.
Travel
US residents who travel abroad are generally eligible to donate platelets immediately upon their return.
If you have ever lived in a malaria-endemic country for at least 5 years, there must be a subsequent 3 year period without travel to any malaria-endemic countries before becoming eligible. A malaria-endemic country is defined by any country having an area where CDC recommends anti-malarial chemoprophylaxis in travelers. A waiting period applies whether or not a traveler took any chemoprophylaxis.
Personal Life
Getting a tattoo is acceptable if it was applied by a state regulated entity with sterile needles and non-reused ink. Otherwise, a 3 month deferral applies. The following states DO NOT regulate tattoo facilities: Georgia, Idaho, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Utah, Wyoming, and District of Columbia.
Getting an ear or body piercing is acceptable as long as it was done using single-use equipment. Otherwise, a 3 month deferral applies.
Donors are not eligible to donate while pregnant and must wait 6 weeks following the end of pregnancy.
Donors who have had sexual contact with a new partner or multiple partners in the last 3 months and had anal sex are deferred for 3 months from the last date of anal sex.
