Currently, the Food & Drug Administration requires gay and bisexual men to abstain from sex with other men for one year before donating blood.
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The FDA said in a notice in the Federal Register that it is looking for comments on the potential to use “individual risk assessments” rather than the current blanket one year deferral for men who have sex with men, meant to guard against the spread of HIV.
The FDA will take all comments into account during its efforts to reevaluate and update blood donor deferral policies.
The ban was originally put in place with the intention of limiting the risk of getting the AIDS virus in blood, but activists say it’s unfair and discriminatory.
In other words, does it make sense to just ban people for a year after having had sex? “This action by the FDA signals that the agency is willing to listen and move toward a policy based on science rather than sexual orientation”.
Well, if the FDA lifted its previous total ban of gay and bisexual men donating blood, it could have increased the nation’s annual blood supply by 4%, according to a 2014 research brief (PDF) that Gates co-authored and that was published by the Williams Institute. Blood is Blood founder Jordan Moll-Vigrass said it’s time for the FDA to end its “archaic” policies. “The tragedy at Pulse nightclub in Orlando highlighted the discrimination gay and bisexual men face when attempting to donate blood to those in need”. Comments will remain open through November 2016.
Tests have since improved and all blood is now screened, but tests for HIV don’t catch very early infections. Through the comment period he expects the FDA to receive evidence that will point them in the direction of a better policy with a much shorter window for potential exposure.
Cahill and his colleagues at Fenway’s National LGBT Health Education Center would like to see a policy developed that looks at individual risk in the blood donation process.
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We’re very happy they’re talking about changing. For example, could questions about specific sexual behaviors be asked if they helped to identify which donors should be at least temporarily deferred because of risk factors? It came after the agency received complaints that the current policy is discriminatory.
