FDA to make easier for gay and bisexual men to donate blood : Shots - Health News : NPR

Contents:

• THE RED CROSS IS CHANGG S POLICY ON BLOOD DONATNS FOR GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN
• GAY MEN STILL FACE HURDL TO DONATE BLOOD AMID NATNAL SHORTAGE
• I'M A GAY MAN AND HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO DONATE BLOOD DUE TO THE FDA BAN. I WAS PART OF THE RED CROSS STUDY THAT WILL HELP OVERTURN THAT.
• LETTG GAY MEN DONATE BLOOD COULD HELP SOLVE A MAJOR HEALTH CRISIS
• ADVANCE STUDY ON DONATN ELIGIBILY REQUIREMENTS FOR GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN
• FDA PROPOS ALLOWG GAY AND BISEXUAL MONOGAMO MEN TO DONATE BLOOD
• RED CROSS WOULD WELE CHANGE ALLOWG GAY MEN TO DONATE BLOOD

THE RED CROSS IS CHANGG S POLICY ON BLOOD DONATNS FOR GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN

(WRIC) — The Amerin Red Cross announced Tuday that is changg s rtrictns on blood donatns om gay and bisexual men. The Associated Prs reported the FDA put a lifetime donatn ban on gay and bisexual men 1983 durg the AIDS epimic. In addn to gay and bisexual men, the Red Cross’ policy also affects women who have sex wh an MSM man and donors wh recent tattoos or piercgs.

GAY MEN STILL FACE HURDL TO DONATE BLOOD AMID NATNAL SHORTAGE

Dpe this urgent need for donatns, people who have sex wh gay or bisexual men are still facg rtrictns on their abily to give Food and Dg Admistratn bars people who have had sex wh gay or bisexual men om donatg blood for three months followg the most recent sexual ntact bee of fears of HIV the blood agency changed the ferral perd om 12 months to three months November 2020 as blood donatns fell and hospals faced cril shortag durg the first year of the COVID-19 advot, cludg the Human Rights Campaign, say the FDA is movg too slowly on removg the rtrictn, sayg that 's an outright ban on the abily of people, particularly gay and bisexual men, to donate blood.

Rtrictns on blood donatns om gay and bisexual men, who are nsired to be at high risk for HIV or AIDS transmissn, date back to the and bisexual men unrgo dividual risk asssments stead of time-based bans untri around the world, recently cludg Greece and France, acrdg to ternatnal reports. A person is tted durg the first gay men's blood drive, held at the Memorial Blood Center St. The event was held to prott feral l that effectively ban gay men om donatg Bispg/Star Tribune via Getty Imag, FILEValant told ABC News a new statement that rearchers are halfway toward s goal of enrollg 2, 000 participants across eight ci: Washgton D.

They enurage gay and bisexual men who are 18 to 39 years old to participate the FDA, a statement to ABC News, said that this study uld generate data that will help the agency terme if a donor's dividual risk asssment and qutnnaire would be jt as effective rcg the risk of HIV the blood supply as the time-based ferrals the FDA already has FDA also said do not have a specific timele for when the studi will be pleted but that is "mted to gatherg the scientific data that n support alternative donor ferral polici that mata a high level of blood safety. In high school, I uldn't donate blood like the rt of my peers bee I'm gay. For years, I wanted to donate, but the FDA's ban on gay men donatg blood stood my way.

I'M A GAY MAN AND HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO DONATE BLOOD DUE TO THE FDA BAN. I WAS PART OF THE RED CROSS STUDY THAT WILL HELP OVERTURN THAT.

But the study I signed up for required only six Red Cross-sponsored Advance study llected blood om 1, 600 gay and bisexual men across the US. Sce then, has been lled "neher medilly nor scientifilly warranted" by the Amerin Red Cross and "discrimatory and not based on sound science" by the Amerin Medil Associatn; all donated blood is screened for HIV, regardls of the donor's genr or sexual a gay man, I was barred om donatg blood all my life until I signed up for the Advance study.

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

I was first barred om donatg blood high schoolGrowg up a Los Angel school, I was fortably, proudly, and illtrly gay — my teenage md, at least. I didn't want to expla that gay blood was emed unworthy of donatn.

ADVANCE STUDY ON DONATN ELIGIBILY REQUIREMENTS FOR GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN

I wasn't angry that I was beg discrimated agast; I was angry bee I had blood to give — blood that I wanted to give — and wasn't able to bee of an illegimate policy rooted Reagan-era homophobia. This year, the FDA proposed a plan that would elimate the time lims and allow monogamo gay men to donate. Fally, I got to give blood as a proud gay manAt the Pasana Red Cross Blood, Platelet and Plasma Donatn Center, I was led to a private room the back.

FDA PROPOS ALLOWG GAY AND BISEXUAL MONOGAMO MEN TO DONATE BLOOD

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.

RED CROSS WOULD WELE CHANGE ALLOWG GAY MEN TO DONATE BLOOD

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.

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.