New guidelines proposed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in late January would make it so LGBTQ men would no longer have to abstain from sex to donate blood.
The revised recommendations say potential donors should be screened for eligibility based on individual risk factors and not gender and sexuality.
“Under the old policy, a gay man who had been in a monogamous relationship for 20 years couldn't donate blood if they'd been sexually active in the last three months, whereas a straight guy who'd had 20 partners in the last month would be eligible to donate,” Kansas City University professor Dr. Benjamin Grin told Up To Date on Tuesday. “And that really didn't align with the science about the risk of contracting HIV.”
While advocates say this a step in the right direction for equality, some also think the proposed guidance doesn't go far enough and continues to stigmatize LGBTQ men.
The news comes as the nation experiences a severe blood supply shortage made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Final recommendations will be released after a 60 day public comment period and likely won't take effect until the end of the year.
- Dr. Benjamin Grin, assistant professor at Kansas City University and Chief Medical Officer for the KCMO Health Department
