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American Red Cross introduces Rapid Pass at Castleton blood drive

Wednesday, Feb. 3 at 10 a.m. — CASTLETON — Castleton University will be the site of a Red Cross Blood Drive on Wednesday, Feb. 3. The drive will be held in the Campus Center’s 1787 Room from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. The Red Cross is facing urgent need for all blood types to replenish the national blood supply after a very slow November and December. The Rutland region did well through the holiday season but nationally donations were down significantly resulting in possible shortages going forward. They remind donors to bring donor cards if they have one and if not, a valid picture ID.

New to the blood drives is the Rapid Pass system. This system was designed to reduce the amount of time it takes to donate. Rapid Pass offers donors a way to complete their pre-reading and donation questions online from the comfort and privacy of their home or office, reducing the time they spend at blood drives by as much as 15 minutes. That means happier donors!

Using Rapid Pass is simple:

Visit redcrossblood.org/RapidPass; read the information; answer the questions; print the pass or email it to themselves.

Important information to remember:

RapidPass cannot be completed prior to the date of the drive. The donor must complete the steps to redeem their pass on the day they donate.

Donors must complete RapidPass using a desktop or laptop computer. RapidPass cannot currently be completed using a mobile device, such as a smartphone or tablet.

RapidPass does not take the place of scheduling an appointment. It is only used to complete the pre-reading and pre-donation questionnaire in advance of an appointment.

Walk-ins are welcome. Appointments can be made at redcrossblood.org or 1-800-733-2767.

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