The province’s Health Minister says there is still a need for blood donations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

John Haggie says there is a significant number of people in the province with Hemophilia which is one of the many reasons why making the time to donate is still important.

Haggie says we use a lot of blood in the province over the course of a working week, and the province is often challenged as an island to maintain a supply.)

Appointments are still being made and blood collection is being conducted in a safe and physically distant way to protect both staff and patients.

Haggie says there are more restrictions in place around who can donate if someone has been exposed to COVID-19.