Last Updated on October 2, 2022
Feeling under the weather? Then you’d better remove that rubber bracelet…just in case.
They come in a wide selection of colors, but the most famous is the Lance Armstrong “LiveStrong” yellow bracelets. The Lance Armstrong Foundation has sold 28 million in 60 countries.
But there are plenty of others choices, depending on your charity of choice: pink bracelets often raise money for breast cancer research. 7-Eleven stores sell green bracelets with a portion of the cost going to the USO. The Diabetes Research Institute sells red bracelets, and My*Soldier also sells red ones. Ohio State University does, too, to raise money for the Buckeye athletic scholarship fund. Virginia Tech sells orange bracelets to benefit the United Way, and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation also sells orange bracelets to raise funds for their research projects. American Eagle Outfitters offer customers a selection of either red, blue, orange or green when making a donation to support the YMCA National Safe Place or Jumpstart programs. Athletic shoe chain Finish Line sells blue bracelets to raise money for local Boys & Girls Clubs. Choosehope.com sells purple and magenta bands to raise funds for cancer research.
And that’s just some of the many options available.
But if you become ill and end up in a hospital, those fashion statements for a good cause could cause unexpected trouble. Some hospitals place similar bracelets on their patients — for very different reasons, according to an article from the St. Petersburg Times (no direct link available).
For some hospitals, a yellow bracelet stands for — of all things — “Do Not Resuscitate.” Several Florida hospitals associated with BayCare Health Systems use a similar color coding, and use purple on patients at risk of falling down and red on patients who have allergies.
Some hospitals have begun asking their patients to either remove the bracelets or cover them with white tape for the length of the stay. They certainly wouldn’t want one’s charitable act to cause a medical blunder!
