Male Blood Donors - that pesky sex question...
What it means: It's never been the Red Cross who's said "Hey, you gay guys can't donate blood." It's the FDA...as I have repeatedly told my gay or bi friends who have come to me frothing at the mouth when they got deferred. Now, the Red Cross and other blood banks have asked the FDA to review that policy and (hopefully) change it.
I'll keep you posted...
Deferral Policy Regarding Males Who Have Had Sex with Males (MSM)
• Patient safety and the integrity of the blood supply is the top priority of the
American Red Cross.
• The Red Cross is obligated to follow all Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
guidelines to the blood industry regarding donor eligibility.
• The ARC strongly supports the use of rational, scientifically-based deferral
periods that are applied fairly and consistently among donors who engage in
similar risk activities.
• The Red Cross commends the willingness of the FDA to review the MSM
deferral as part of its review of current behavioral risk deferral policies.
• The Red Cross has worked with the AABB and others in the blood industry to
develop an overall data-based industry position on the MSM deferral.
• Subsequent to the last public FDA review of the deferral policy for donors
reporting MSM behavior (September 2000), additional information has
accumulated regarding the safety of blood transfusion. In particular, considerable
experience with the efficacy of nucleic acid testing (NAT) has been gained.
• The American Red Cross (ARC) supports the AABB position that the current
lifetime deferral for men who have had sex with other men is unwarranted and
recommends that deferral criteria be modified and made comparable with criteria
for other groups at increased risk for sexual transmission of transfusiontransmitted
infections.
• The safety of the donor and the ultimate recipient of the blood is our paramount
concern. We believe that accurate donor histories and medically supportable
donor deferral criteria are critical to the continued safety of blood transfusion.
I'll keep you posted...
Deferral Policy Regarding Males Who Have Had Sex with Males (MSM)
• Patient safety and the integrity of the blood supply is the top priority of the
American Red Cross.
• The Red Cross is obligated to follow all Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
guidelines to the blood industry regarding donor eligibility.
• The ARC strongly supports the use of rational, scientifically-based deferral
periods that are applied fairly and consistently among donors who engage in
similar risk activities.
• The Red Cross commends the willingness of the FDA to review the MSM
deferral as part of its review of current behavioral risk deferral policies.
• The Red Cross has worked with the AABB and others in the blood industry to
develop an overall data-based industry position on the MSM deferral.
• Subsequent to the last public FDA review of the deferral policy for donors
reporting MSM behavior (September 2000), additional information has
accumulated regarding the safety of blood transfusion. In particular, considerable
experience with the efficacy of nucleic acid testing (NAT) has been gained.
• The American Red Cross (ARC) supports the AABB position that the current
lifetime deferral for men who have had sex with other men is unwarranted and
recommends that deferral criteria be modified and made comparable with criteria
for other groups at increased risk for sexual transmission of transfusiontransmitted
infections.
• The safety of the donor and the ultimate recipient of the blood is our paramount
concern. We believe that accurate donor histories and medically supportable
donor deferral criteria are critical to the continued safety of blood transfusion.