EOS Costa Rica Leverages Blockchain to Tackle a Global Blood Supply Shortage Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica--(BUSINESS WIRE)--EOS Costa Rica is leveraging EOS.IO, an open-source blockchain protocol, to deploy Lifebank, an incentive-based healthcare solution for blood donations, to help solve a global blood shortage caused by COVID-19. Millions of lives are reportedly at risk as doctors grapple with social distancing’s effect on donations. Lifebank offers doctors a way to better manage the blood donation process, increase supply chain efficiency and automate rewards for donors.

The coronavirus pandemic is firmly cemented as the second-worst pandemic in U.S. history, trailing only the Spanish Flu. As death tolls surge, blood supplies are quietly evaporating. In March, the Red Cross canceled 2,700 blood drives, resulting in 86,000 fewer blood donations - an 80% decline. Now, with more than 30,000 canceled blood drives through June, the remaining blood supply is quickly diminishing.

Now, with the Red Cross reporting less than two days’ worth of blood supplies, EOS Costa Rica is leveraging blockchain technology to present an innovative solution to the worsening problem.

EOS Costa Rica co-founder, Edgar Fernandez, explained, “The coronavirus pandemic uncovered a number of problem areas in the healthcare supply chain - one of which being blood donations. To help encourage continued donations, Lifebank connects blood donors to donation centers and local businesses, using smart contracts to provide consent between donation centers and blood donors. Those who donate blood using Lifebank will receive tokens to redeem at local businesses.”

The Lifebank application, built using EOS.IO blockchain technology, creates a value exchange between eligible blood donors, donation centers and participating local businesses. Additionally, it streamlines the process of screening and logging viable candidates, and facilitates verifiable human accounts on a blockchain. Bots can't donate blood.

Placing a premium on user security, Lifebank donors need only register with an account name and password to create an EOS.IO account. Because a user’s blood proves they are human, there are no additional KYC requirements.

Lifebank recently won the Block.one “Coding For Change” hackathon, aimed at addressing the problems and/or expected societal changes related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, Lifebank is in the running for a $100,000 equity-free investment via the UNICEF Innovation Fund. The fund offers to provide early stage (seed) financing and mentoring to for-profit technology startups that have the potential to benefit humanity.

UNICEF, Gavi Alliance, The World Economic Forum and several other global organizations have recently highlighted blockchain technologies as critical for expediting solutions for COVID-related issues.

Block.one is a software publisher specializing in blockchain technologies. EOSIO is Block.one’s first project.

To learn more, visit eoscostarica.io

Follow us on Twitter: @EOSCostaRica

About EOSIO

EOSIO is a next-generation, open-source blockchain protocol with industry-leading transaction speed and flexible utility. Introduced in May 2017, it has since been widely recognized as the first performant blockchain platform for businesses across the world.

About EOS Costa Rica

EOS Costa Rica is a spin-off startup of pioneering company Sistemas Edenia Internacional S.A., incorporated in 1987 and operating as a blockchain infrastructure provider since 2013. We have proudly been in the forefront of disruption, running the first BBS in the country, launching mobile web to Costa Ricans, and now advocating for blockchain’s many assets.