Short answer: Usually yes, at the American Red Cross. Its rules say people with diabetes or prediabetes can generally donate if they feel well, that the type of diabetes medicine usually does not disqualify them, and that donors on any kind of insulin are eligible. Its eligibility page does not name GLP-1 medicines. Every donor still has to weigh at least 110 pounds and pass blood pressure, pulse and hemoglobin checks on the day.
The American Red Cross alphabetical eligibility page has two entries that apply:
The page we read does not name semaglutide, tirzepatide, liraglutide or dulaglutide. People who take a GLP-1 medicine for weight without diabetes are not covered by the diabetes entry, so the health historian at the drive is the one to ask.
| Check | Rule |
|---|---|
| Weight | At least 110 pounds for whole blood |
| Blood pressure | No higher than 180/100 and at least 90/50, feeling well |
| Hemoglobin | At least 12.5 g/dL for women and 13.0 g/dL for men, and no higher than 20 g/dL |
| Gap between donations | At least 8 weeks between whole blood donations |
The Red Cross notes that stress, nutrition, illness, hydration and weight can all change these readings. Nausea or tiredness from a recent dose increase can count against feeling well on the day. People losing weight on a GLP-1 medicine may want to check they are still above the weight minimum.
The Red Cross asks people to wait 3 months after using needles to inject drugs that were not prescribed by a physician, because of hepatitis and HIV concerns. A prescribed GLP-1 pen or insulin does not fall under that wording. Injecting something without a prescription, such as a product sold for research use, does by its wording, which is the same rule covered in donating blood on TRT.
Donors on blood thinners such as warfarin or apixaban cannot give blood, and the page lists them by name. That rule is about bleeding, not diabetes.
The NIDDK names insulin, sulfonylureas and meglitinides as the diabetes medicines that can cause low blood sugar, and lists skipped or delayed meals and extra activity among the triggers. How a GLP-1 medicine fits into that is covered in can GLP-1 medicines cause low blood sugar.
Telling the staff about insulin use and carrying a fast-acting carbohydrate, as the NIDDK suggests for anyone at risk of lows, are simple steps. Dose Track shows the last dose time, which is one of the questions that can come up.
Read more on Dose Track: Donating blood on TRT · Hypoglycemia · Hematocrit · Ozempic side effects