Ireland's rtrictns on blood donatn by gay and bisexual men to be eased om next year

Contents:

• NEW CRERIA FOR GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN TO DONATE BLOOD EFFECT
• IRELAND TO EASE RTRICTNS ON BLOOD DONATNS OM GAY, BISEXUAL MEN
• RUL ON BLOOD DONATN FOR GAY PEOPLE
• BLOOD DONATN AND GAY MEN
• HEALTH MISTER SIMON HARRIS REVEALS GAY MEN FALLY ALLOWED TO GIVE BLOOD IRELAND
• WHAT ARE THE BLOOD DONATN L GLOBALLY FOR GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN?
• GAY BLOOD BAN: L ON GAY MEN DONATG TO BE RELAXED FURTHER
• GAY MEN CAN NOW DONATE BLOOD NORTHERN IRELAND
• POLICY ON GAY MEN DONATG BLOOD CHALLENGED HIGH COURT

NEW CRERIA FOR GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN TO DONATE BLOOD EFFECT

New blood donatn chang e to effect today allowg gay and bisexual men who have sex wh men to donate at an earlier stage.

HIV Ireland exprsed disappotment that the IBTS cid not to implement a remendatn to remove oral sex as a reason for ferrg gay and bisexual men, as agreed by an expert review group. Ireland's rtrictns on blood donatn by gay and bisexual men to be eased om next year. THE IRISH BLOOD Transfn Service (IBTS) is set to rce the time that gay and bisexual men have to wa to give blood after havg sexual ntact wh other men.

CHANGES TO BLOOD donatn l the North now mean that gay and bisexual men n donate blood so long as they have been a same-sex relatnship wh one partner for more than three months. SDLP Health Spokperson Cara Hunter has enuraged gay and bisexual men who are eligible to nsir donatg blood.

IRELAND TO EASE RTRICTNS ON BLOOD DONATNS OM GAY, BISEXUAL MEN

Fianna Fáil senator Fna O’Loughl said the review will look at the impact of liftg the life ban on blood donatn by gay and bisexual men. Prr to the chang, there was a lifetime ban on gay and bisexual men donatg blood. “Currently gay and bisexual men n only donate blood  Ireland if they have reaed om sexual activy for 12 months, creria that do not need to be met by heterosexual men.

Sir, – Wednday was World Aids day, 40 years after the HIV vis was first disvered as the etlogic e of Ireland, the lifelong ban on gay, bisexual and men who have sex wh men givg blood (a ban which was first troduced untri after 1981) was lifted 2017. In effect, this meant that gay, bisexual and men who have sex wh men uld qualify as blood donors – but only after abstag om any sexual ntact for one year.

The same creria do not apply to heterosexual the UK June of this year, a new policy was implemented allowg gay, bisexual and men who have sex wh men to give blood – whout any perd of abstag. It also, prumably, me om Brish men who were able to give blood unrtrictedly bee of the change the a gay cizen of this untry, I believe the current approach to blood donatn prejudicial, that an evince-based, dividualised asssment of sexual behavural patterns replace what is an outmod groupg together of muni based upon the prumptn of sexual the very real possibily of further blood shortag both now and the future, I ll upon the Government to reasss the current abstentn clse immediately. Sir, – Brian McMahon (Letters, July 2nd) is entirely rrect his asssment of the current policy banng sexually active gay and bisexual men donatg blood now, the men are prevented om performg their civic duty 26 unti on this island, but if they travel to the other six unti, their blood donatns will be weled if they’ve been sexually abstent for the prev three gap between North and South is due to bee even wir September, when Northern Ireland will align s policy wh Bra.

RUL ON BLOOD DONATN FOR GAY PEOPLE

There is no scientific or ratnal basis for the ban on blood donatns om gay and bisexual men this need a fair, safe and robt blood donatn service, wh polici based on science and evince, not the current chaos, irratnal fear and embedd stutnal need change. In January 2017, the Irish Blood Transfn Service (IBTS) updated the donor ferral creria for gay and bisexual men donatg blood, changg om a life-long ferral ( place sce the emergence of HIV the 1980’s) to a one-year ferral.

Currently Ireland, gay, bisexual and men who have sex wh men (gbMSM) mt absta om any sexual ntact (regardls of the e of ndoms and/or PrEP) for a mimum of 12 months before meetg the creria for donatg blood.

BLOOD DONATN AND GAY MEN

In the n-up to the General Electn 2020, HIV Ireland published a HIV Manifto llg on the next Government to “End the discrimatory 12-month ferral perd on blood donatns for gay, bisexual and men who have sex wh men.

Ireland's l on gay blood donors were le wh the most current scientific evince and the practice the UKPublished: 12:59, 16 Jan 2017THE ban on gay men donatg blood has been lifted, 's been revealed. Ireland's l on gay blood donors were le wh the most current scientific evince and the practice the UK, the Department of Health said.

S., the Red Cross, along wh One Blood, Valant and partner LGBTQ+ muny health centers, are participatg a pilot study fund by the FDA select ci that uld potentially lead to chang for blood donor eligibily creria for gay and bisexual men. In Ireland, as is the se a number of other untri, gay and bisexual men are prohibed om donatg blood if they have had sex wh another man the last 12 months.

HEALTH MISTER SIMON HARRIS REVEALS GAY MEN FALLY ALLOWED TO GIVE BLOOD IRELAND

Last month, rearchers the Uned Stat found that there was no crease HIV-transmissn through blood transfns after s lifetime ban on gay and bi donors was dropped. Gay blood ban remas place spe ronavis panmic sparkg shortag.

Dpe the challeng, the 12-month ferral perd for gay and bisexual men still stands, meang an entire hort of the populatn is eligible. The US recently announced would allow gay and bisexual men to donate blood after abstag om sex for three months, a rctn of the prev 12-month ban.

(This May 11 story rrects date and time reference for France fal par)LONDON (Thomson Rters Foundatn) - Countri around the world are reviewg rtrictns on blood donatns by gay and bisexual men imposed durg the 1980s HIV/AIDS crisis, wh some removg blanket bans and others rcg wag perds after gay ’s Supreme Court led on Friday that a 12-month ferral perd for gay and bi men to give blood was unnstutnal, a policy LGBT+ mpaigners had long argued was discrimatory given morn blood-screeng now, Brazil’s ernment will have to treat gay and bisexual men the same as heterosexual men when donatg blood.

WHAT ARE THE BLOOD DONATN L GLOBALLY FOR GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN?

It uld wre a new law that restat the ban, but s posn is not yet blood suppli have e unr prsure due to the ronavis panmic, lls have grown for ernments to replace abstence perds for men who have sex wh men to donate blood wh dividual risk-based month, the Uned Stat and Northern Ireland cut their abstence perds, while Atralia said plans to do are the l erng blood donatn by gay and bi men around the world:- Countri that impose lifelong bans on gay and bisexual men donatg blood clu Croatia, Iceland, Malaysia, Slovenia, Sgapore, Tridad and Tobago and Ukrae- At least 17 untri now have no rtrictns, cludg Argenta, Italy, Rsia, South Ai, Spa and, as of January this year, Hungary- In April 2020, the Uned Stat cut s celibacy perd om 12 months to three months amid a blood shortage- Last month, Northern Ireland also rced s ferral perd om one year to three months, brgg to le wh regulatns the rt of the Uned Kgdom- Some untri differentiate between blood products and blood general, but Bra men who have had sex wh another man the last three months and revered om Covid-19 nnot donate their plasma to a ronavis treatment trial- Most untri do not mentn whether takg Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), a HIV-preventn dg, affects gay and bi men’s abily to donate blood.

Bra says s three-month abstence perd appli regardls of whether someone tak PrEP or not- When Atralia announced s tentn to cut the abstence perd om 12 months to three April, said people takg PrEP would still have a 12-month abstence perd- Atria lifted a blanket ban on men who have sex wh men givg blood, replacg wh a 12-month abstence perd for gay and bi men December 2019- In March, Denmark lifted s lifelong ban, implementg a prevly announced wag perd of four months- France has had a wag perd of 12 months sce 2016, when lifted a ban on gay and bisexual men givg blood that had been place sce 1983Sourc: Thomson Rters Foundatn rearch, RtersReportg by Rachel Savage @rachelmsavage and Elsa Ohlen; Addnal reportg by Fab Teixeira; Edg by Helen Popper and Hugo Greenhalgh.

Mister for Health Stephen Donnelly has announced further liberalisatn to the l rtrictg gay and bisexual men om donatg blood. Fe Gael Senator Jerry Buttimer, who beme one of Ireland’s first openly gay TDs when he me out 2012, said Ireland was part of a worldwi trend:.

GAY BLOOD BAN: L ON GAY MEN DONATG TO BE RELAXED FURTHER

In the Uned Kgdom, all four Natnal Health Servic now allow gay or bisexual men monogamo relatnships to donate blood at any time. The prev three month ferral for gay men was replaced wh a ban on donatns om any dividual, regardls of genr, who has had anal sex wh a new partner the past three months. Lifetime ban on gay men donatg blood lifted.

THE LIFETIME BAN on gay men donatg blood to the Irish Blood Transfn Service (IBTS) has been lifted as of today.

GAY MEN CAN NOW DONATE BLOOD NORTHERN IRELAND

A gay man has brought a High Court challenge agast an Irish Blood Transfn Service (IBTS) policy which prevents him donatg blood unls he abstas om havg sex for 12 actn has been taken by Tomas Heneghan (27), of East Wall, Dubl 3, who claims the IBTS’s policy of not acceptg blood donatns om men who have anal or oral sex wh other men wh the prev 12 months is attempted to make a blood donatn to the IBTS last April.

POLICY ON GAY MEN DONATG BLOOD CHALLENGED HIGH COURT

OneroHe claims a far ls onero rtrictn uld be imposed rather than the 12-month ferral, which would protect blood Heneghan also claims the cisn to place an “tomatic ferral” on him is unlawful and breach of EU law and European muni regulatns on the qualy and safety of human blood also claims the policy is disproportnate, discrimat agast homosexual and bisexual men, and breach his nstutnal rights and rights unr the European Conventn on Human a rult of the IBTS cisn, which he says was munited to him verbally on April 16th last, he has taken judicial review proceedgs agast the IBTS, the State and the Mister for Health.

He is also seekg applitn me before Mr Jtice Seam Noonan, who granted Mr Heneghan permissn, on an ex-parte basis, to brg the judge adjourned the matter to Heneghan prevly brought a High Court challenge aimed at endg what had been the permanent ban on acceptg blood donatns by gay men.