In a shift towards a more inclusive blood donation policy, the American Red Cross has eased restrictions on gay and bisexual men, implementing guidance from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to revamp their donor assessment questionnaire. The revisions aim to focus more on a donor’s individual history, rather than their gender or sexual orientation. (American Red Cross)
Prior to these changes, gay and bisexual men were prohibited from donating blood if they had engaged in sexual activity with other men within the last three months. Underlying this regulation was the remnant of a policy implemented during the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) outbreak in the 1980s, when the LGBTQ+ community was severely affected. The presence of such restrictions has been increasingly called into question with advancements in technology to detect the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), and zero recorded instances of HIV or Hepatitis B transmissions through plasma donations over recent years. (FDA guidance)
Updated guidelines from the FDA now suggest that all individuals, irrespective of their sexual orientation or gender identity, should disclose any new sexual partners and recent engagement in behaviours that hold a higher risk of contracting HIV, such as anal sex. Additional questions focus on medications taken to prevent or treat HIV infections, like PrEP, which can drastically reduce HIV levels and encourage safer sex, but still pose a potential risk of transmitting HIV through blood transfusion.
The move by the American Red Cross resonates with similar initiatives worldwide, including in the United Kingdom, where blood donation eligibility for gay and bisexual men was recently expanded, and a gender- and sexual-orientation-neutral questionnaire was implemented. (NHS Blood and Transplant) In 2020, Brazil’s Supreme Court found a ban preventing gay and bisexual men who had been sexually active within the past year from donating blood to be unconstitutional. (Bing News)
The transition towards a non-discriminatory blood donation landscape is noteworthy for not only promoting inclusivity, but also potentially increasing the donor base, especially in times of increased need due to events like the COVID-19 pandemic. (Jurist)