Canada lifts rtrictns on gay men donatg blood | PBS NewsHour

Contents:

• CANADIAN BLOOD SERVIC NOW ALLOWS SOME GAY, BISEXUAL MEN TO DONATE PLASMA CALGARY, LONDON, ONT.
• CANADA LIFTS RTRICTNS ON GAY MEN DONATG BLOOD
• LETTG GAY MEN DONATE BLOOD COULD HELP SOLVE A MAJOR HEALTH CRISIS
• WHAT ARE THE BLOOD DONATN L GLOBALLY FOR GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN?
• NEW US BLOOD DONATN L ALLOW MORE GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN TO GIVE
• LGBTQ ACTIVISTS HOPE OFFICIALS LET GAY MEN DONATE BLOOD AMID COVID-19 NCELLATNS
• CANADA TO LIFT BLOOD DONATN BAN ON SEXUALLY ACTIVE GAY, BISEXUAL MEN
• FDA'S REVISED BLOOD DONATN GUIDANCE FOR GAY MEN STILL COURTS CONTROVERSY
• HERE'S HOW YOU N DONATE BLOOD, IF YOU'RE A GAY MAN
• CANADIAN BLOOD SERVIC REMENDS END TO OUTRIGHT BAN ON DONATNS OM GAY MEN
• CANADA LIFTS BAN ON GAY MEN DONATG BLOOD; MT BE ABSTENT FOR 5 YEARS

CANADIAN BLOOD SERVIC NOW ALLOWS SOME GAY, BISEXUAL MEN TO DONATE PLASMA CALGARY, LONDON, ONT.

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.

CANADA LIFTS RTRICTNS ON GAY MEN DONATG BLOOD

LondonCanadian Blood Servic is takg the first steps to allowg gay and bisexual men who have sex wh men — which lls the gbMSM muny — to donate blood plasma, startg the tt ci of Calgary and London, agency's prev policy has been lled discrimatory, cludg by men who have sex wh menBlood plasma is the straw-loured liquid ponent left when blood cells are removed om whole blood. Canadian Blood Servic is ttg out s plasma donatn eligibily, London, Ont., and Calgary, for gay and bisexual men who have sex wh men. (Hiep Vu via Canadian Blood Servic)Canadian Blood Servic is takg the first steps to allowg gay and bisexual men who have sex wh men — which lls the gbMSM muny — to donate blood plasma, which is startg two tt ci: Calgary, Alta., and London, marks the first time the agency is openg donatns to gay and bisexual men.

LETTG GAY MEN DONATE BLOOD COULD HELP SOLVE A MAJOR HEALTH CRISIS

My blood is a rare type and ed to donate regularly before gay men were banned.

"Plasma donated by gay, bisexual and other men who have sex wh men London and Calgary will be ma to plasma prote products when the donor at least 60 days later wh a plasma donatn that tts negative for fect diseas.

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

It is ed a variety of treatments for rare, life-threateng, chronic and geic years, Canadian Blood Servic has e unr fire for not allowg men who have sex wh men to donate blood, a practice many ll homophobic. The agency did not say when would expand the current plasma donatn abily to other centr beyond Calgary and ferral perd drops to 3 months for gay, bisexual men"We unrstand that beg turned away om donatg n leave any donor wh a sense of tratn and disappotment, " the agency said.

NEW US BLOOD DONATN L ALLOW MORE GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN TO GIVE

"We also regnize that the slow pace of chang to donor creria that still exclu many gay, bisexual and other men who have sex wh men has been paful and tratg for many, and we are workg to create a more clive system.

OTTAWA (AP) — Health Canada on Thursday lifted rtrictns on gay men donatg blood, a move Prime Mister Jt T said was “good news for all Canadians” but had taken too long.

LGBTQ ACTIVISTS HOPE OFFICIALS LET GAY MEN DONATE BLOOD AMID COVID-19 NCELLATNS

Health Canada approved the requt by Canadian Blood Servic to end the policy that rtricts homosexuals om donatg blood for three months after engagg gay sex. The policy began 1992 as an outright ban on gay men donatg blood followg a tated blood sndal. Several chang were later ma to the blood donatn regime until ferral perds for donatns by gay men were lowered om a lifetime ban to three months 2019.

But there is one easily implementable solutn to the natnal blood-supply shortage that’s been available for years and uld be a lifele: allowg gay and bisexual men to donate eely. S., gay and bisexual men (often referred to as MSM, or “men who have sex wh men”) are not allowed to give blood if they’ve had sex wh another man the past three months. “It is my opn that we ntue to have a real problem wh laws and regulatns based on fear rather than science, ” she ntuatn of a MSM-specific barrier to givg is not only limg the blood supply, ’s unnecsary and “rooted homophobia, ” explas Perry N.

”In 2015, theFDA loosened s rtrictn, permtg gay and bisexual men to donate blood as long as they hadn’t had sex wh another man the past year. For example, if you’re a gay man who wears ndoms durg sex, you lim your risk of ntractg HIV. Same go for gay men who are married or a long-term monogamo relatnship.

CANADA TO LIFT BLOOD DONATN BAN ON SEXUALLY ACTIVE GAY, BISEXUAL MEN

Conducted tanm wh the natn’s largt blood centers—the Amerin Red Cross, Valant, and OneBlood—the rearch effort will survey 2, 000 gay and bisexual men across the untry between the ag of 18 and 30 who have had sex wh at least one man the past three months. ”The policy change uld have a signifint posive effect on the mental health of gay and bisexual men, too.

It also puts gay and bisexual men at higher risk for acquirg HIV over time. “Social and stctural factors that e gay men to feel othered e them to engage risky sexual behavr, ” Halkis says. So a ban like this isn’t jt harmful to the Amerin public; “’s credibly harmful to the gay muny, both emotnally and physilly.

The first step is to sign GLAAD’s petn at You then n—and should—te those around you, “sce many people, cludg gay and bi men, don’t know that this ban exists, ” adds Lasky. Let them know you don’t support discrimatory practic that ban gay and bisexual men om dog their civic duty. Calgary paramedic 'elated' as Canada ends blood ban for men who have sex wh menBlood service remends endg ban on gay men donatg bloodInstead of beg asked about genr or sexualy, potential donors will be screened on higher-risk sexual behavur, such as anal sex.

FDA'S REVISED BLOOD DONATN GUIDANCE FOR GAY MEN STILL COURTS CONTROVERSY

Christopher Karas, who filed a human rights plat agast Health Canada to remove the ferral, says the policy still stigmatiz gay, bisexual men, and some transgenr people. Christopher Karas, a gay man who filed a human rights plat agast Health Canada, says the new policy still stigmatiz gay and bisexual men. (Evan Msui/CBC)"But I know that a lot of gay, bi men and trans people will still be barred by this policy, so I thk 's a b unfortunate that the ernment has cid this is the approach they want to take, " said Karas.

"What they're sayg is that gay and bi men and transgenr [people]...

HERE'S HOW YOU N DONATE BLOOD, IF YOU'RE A GAY MAN

Prevly, the feral ernment has tried to block Karas's urt challenge that argu Health Canada is discrimatg agast gay men by overseeg a ban that prevents men who have sex wh other men om donatg blood.

ListenThere's no reason for Canada to ntue banng gay men om donatg blood, says journalistPEERS Alliance says end to ban on gay blood donatn has been 'a long time g'When prsed by reporters on whether Health Canada played a plic role the discrimatory policy, T said scientific evince was need and didn't exist. We know that the slow pace of chang to donor creria that have exclud many gay, bisexual and other men who have sex wh men has been paful and tratg for many.

Blood products beme regulated by the natnal blood system regulator, Health Canada, and the crern affectg gay, bisexual and other men who have sex wh men was ‘grandfathered’ to existg regulatns. Can gay men give blood? Gay and bisexual men are not tomatilly prevented om givg blood.

CANADIAN BLOOD SERVIC REMENDS END TO OUTRIGHT BAN ON DONATNS OM GAY MEN

(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. 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. Gay and bisexual men monogamo relatnships n give blood the US whout abstag om sex unr updated feral health guil that foc on donors’ behavr, not their sexual Food and Dg Admistratn (FDA) guil falized on Thursday ease s-old rtrictns signed to protect the blood supply om agency announced plans for the change January and said this week the new approach n now be implemented by blood updated guil do away wh a requirement that men who have sex wh men absta om sex for three months prr to givg blood. "When we see notic about blood shortag and the urgent need for donatn, 's very tratg to be a posn where you n't donate even though you would be an eligible match, " said Costcu, a sexual health specialist and associate profsor at McMaster anizatn won't allow gay and bisexual men like Costcu to donate blood if they are sexually active unr s current guil — spe seeg people ncel appotments amid lls for social distancg to avoid spreadg the l state that men n't have sex wh other men for three months before beg allowed to give blood bee the anizatn believ the hort is a high-risk group, as they acunt for the largt proportn of new HIV fectns reported Dt Costcu, a sexual health specialist and associate profsor at McMaster Universy Haton, who is gay, said Canadian Blood Servic should look to gay and bisexual men as donors.

CANADA LIFTS BAN ON GAY MEN DONATG BLOOD; MT BE ABSTENT FOR 5 YEARS

(McMaster Universy)Gay and bisexual men have faced rtrictns sce the tated blood sndal of the 1980s, when thoands of Canadians were fected wh HIV or hepatis C om donated blood. That approach screens out gay men who have unprotected sex wh multiple partners, as opposed to those who are monogamo ferral perd drops to 3 months for gay, bisexual menOpnThis is not your father's gay blood ban era.

Costcu also said now is the time to donate bee all the ncellatns and closur have eed up time to give blood, pecially before Canada se a spike s that aren't travel-related — but the polici preventg gay and bisexual men to donate are workg agast that. "To ny that life-givg opportuny to gay and bi-sexual men who have the same ways of wantg to be a part of the muny as anyone else would is so offensive. "Costcu, and many others cludg Pike, say CBS' rearch isn't rooted science, but homophobic stereotyp.

They don't thk there's any reason to le out all gay and bi men, pecially if they practice safe sex, don't have sex often or are a monogamo relatnship. The FDA has announced a relaxg of s rtrictns on gay men beg allowed to donate blood, light of the ronavis disease 2019 panmic.