Amid a nationwide blood bag shortage, organizations are urging donors to participate in collection efforts, in today's bite-sized hospital and health industry news from the District of Columbia and Texas.

• District of Columbia: Amid nationwide blood bag shortages, especially for the universal O-negative blood type, organizations are urging donors to participate in collection efforts. For instance, the Arkansas Blood Institute (ABI) said it was losing hundreds of units of O-negative blood every month because of the shortages. Without the specialized bags required to safely collect "double dose units" of blood from large donors, ABI is struggling to collect enough of the universal blood type. Experts became concerned about the blood bag shortages after the Red Cross warned on Nov. 8 that a severe flu season could threaten the United States' blood supply this winter. Two weeks after the Red Cross issued that warning, several states, including Hawaii, Georgia, and Oklahoma, reported critical shortages. According to the Oklahoma Blood Institute, without more O-negative donors, the shortages could quickly impact area hospitals' transfusions to trauma victims, premature babies, and sickle cell disease patients. (Schoonover, Becker's Hospital Review, 11/23)

• District of Columbia: HHS on Monday issued a proposed update to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act to give Part 2 programs the ability to share the records of patients with substance use disorder (SUD) after they give their consent "for all future uses and disclosures for treatment, payment, and healthcare operations." Under the proposed changes, Part 2 rules would better align privacy measures with HIPAA regulations. "This proposed rule would improve coordination of care for patients receiving treatment while strengthening critical privacy protections to help ensure individuals do not forego life-saving care due to concerns about records disclosure," said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. According to Becerra, differences in privacy laws can result in treatment delays and "negative stereotypes" about individuals with SUD. (Firth, MedPage Today, 11/28; AHA News, 11/28)

• Texas: Houston Public Works this week announced that Houston is under a boil water notice following a power outage at a water purification plant Sunday morning, which caused low water pressure around the city. While power and water pressures have been restored, the boil water notice is still in effect. "We believe the water is safe but based on regulatory requirements when pressure drops below 20 psi we are obligated to issue a boil water notice," Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said in a Tweet. According to Turner, the city must wait at least 24 hours after the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality says the water is safe to drink before lifting the notice. (Archie, NPR, 11/28)