Patients demand blood only from unvaccinated donors – Risks in transfusions

A new trend is emerging in several hospitals, as patients refuse blood transfusions from donors vaccinated against Covid-19, insisting instead on receiving blood only from unvaccinated individuals.

This trend has already led to serious delays in administering treatments, increasing health risks for patients.

Requests without scientific basis

According to Jeremy Jacobs from Vanderbilt University Medical Center, these requests are largely based on misinformation rather than scientific evidence.

As he notes, there is no indication that selecting blood from unvaccinated donors makes transfusions safer.

A study covering the period 2024–2025 recorded 15 cases in which patients or caregivers requested “directed donations,” meaning blood from specific individuals, usually relatives.

A common factor in all cases was the requirement that donors not be vaccinated against Covid-19.

However, blood donation centers do not record or disclose the vaccination status of donors.

Delays and risks for patients

Directed donations are allowed in some countries only in exceptional cases, while in the United States they are more widely practiced but discouraged.

In all 15 cases in the study, the request was linked to a preference for blood from an unvaccinated donor, despite the fact that vaccination status is not recorded by blood banks.

These demands caused delays that put patients at risk. In one case, hemoglobin levels dropped to critical levels, while another patient developed anemia.

Experts stress that directed donations are more complex procedurally and may be associated with an increased risk of infections, as they often come from individual donors.

Misinformation behind the phenomenon

The phenomenon had also appeared during the HIV/AIDS epidemic and resurfaced with the mRNA vaccines for Covid-19, which activate the immune system by producing a viral protein.

Despite extensive studies proving their safety and effectiveness, misinformation continues to influence part of the public. Research in 2025 confirmed that transfusions from vaccinated donors are safe.

The issue is not limited to the United States, as similar requests have been recorded in Wales, while in the United Kingdom a proposal to separate blood supplies was rejected. At the same time, a related legislative initiative is being considered in Oklahoma.

Experts warn that such practices strain healthcare systems and highlight the need to address misinformation through evidence-based information.

The study was published in the scientific journal Transfusion.