It seems the American Red Cross is always talking about low blood levels. That's their job: to ensure that enough blood is on hand for transfusions when we need them. The Red Cross also gets the word out to potential donors when their veins are needed.

Lately, the Red Cross hasn't been talking about low blood levels. It has been talking about emergency-level shortages. Earlier this week, the Missouri-Illinois blood services region said it had less than a half-day supply of O negative and only 19 units of B negative.

The Red Cross says no one will die from this blood shortage, but some surgeries and procedures could be postponed. Unless you have physical reasons why you can't give blood, now is a good time to roll up your sleeve.