Just being trans is not a reason to deny you the opportunity to give blood.
However, you can't donate blood if you've ever had sex with a gay male. Its the FDA's rule, not the Red Cross' rule, and the RC must follow that rule in order to continue supplying blood anywhere the FDA covers. They have tried to change the rule to no avail.
Your screener should have given you a long list of questions to go through before you gave blood and a lot of those questions have to do with drugs you might have taken (even drugs like accutane), which countries you have lived in and visited, and even if you had sex with someone from a certain country or from Africa.
If you answered in the positive to any of the above questions, you might have been turned down for that reason. But if they specifically said it was because you're transgendered, then they are wrong in what they said and you should bring it up with their supervisor.
If he answered yes to any of those, he wouldn't have been able to donate at all that day. My ex worked as an escort years ago, but when I admitted to "having sex with someone who has had sex for drugs or money," I was booted out the door.
Oh yeah, if he answered yes to any of the questions they asked, he couldn't donate probably ever. It depends on the question. Like, if you had a tattoo in a state that isn't regulated, you can't give blood for a year since the tattoo, but after a year you're welcome to do so. Or taken accutaine.
But if you've had sex with a gay male ever, you can't give blood ever. And if you've had sex with someone from Africa, you can't give blood. And if you've done illegal IV drugs, you can't give blood.
The FDA has strict rules and I know a lot of it is stupid, but its just how the RC has to function to be able to give people any blood at all.
Sorry, guess I wasn't too clear. I meant he obviously didn't answer yes to any of the issues you mentioned, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to donate at all. No issue of "a phone call and a letter a few days later." So the issue probably isn't any of the "sex with a man/sex for drugs/tattoo" things.
However, you can't donate blood if you've ever had sex with a gay male. Its the FDA's rule, not the Red Cross' rule,
Wow, I did not know that. Good to hear, in a way, because it makes me feel a little more positively towards the Red Cross, although one bad experience was enough for me.
The thing is that we really do try to involve the gay community in other events including volunteering and disaster services and working blood drives instead of giving blood. But the FDA has a whole list of people who can't donate blood and that's one of them. If we didn't listen to the FDA, even if they told us that people with a lisp can't donate (which would be ridiculous as well), then we couldn't give ANY blood to anyone. And since we're a major source of blood for hospitals, it would really devastate the US supply in certain places.
Do you know of anyone at the Red Cross who has been vocal about advocating policy change? This is the first I've heard of employees of the Red Cross actually opposing that restriction.
In other aspects of the job, however, I bet that working for the Red Cross is extremely rewarding. Bravo!
Oh,I totally get all that. And the bad experience I had wasn't because of the "no gay blood" issue, I donated and had a bad reaction, and the red cross staff were less than pleasant or helpful about it. Looking back, I probably should not have donated that day at all, and the staff should have known that.
That was sort of my guess. Somewhere "trans" got writen on something and someone with very little exposure maybe thought something litke "trans=MTF, MTF=gay guy, gay guy=the FDA up our ass"
Just being trans is not a reason to deny you the opportunity to give blood.
However, you can't donate blood if you've ever had sex with a gay male. Its the FDA's rule, not the Red Cross' rule, and the RC must follow that rule in order to continue supplying blood anywhere the FDA covers. They have tried to change the rule to no avail.
Your screener should have given you a long list of questions to go through before you gave blood and a lot of those questions have to do with drugs you might have taken (even drugs like accutane), which countries you have lived in and visited, and even if you had sex with someone from a certain country or from Africa.
If you answered in the positive to any of the above questions, you might have been turned down for that reason. But if they specifically said it was because you're transgendered, then they are wrong in what they said and you should bring it up with their supervisor.
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But if you've had sex with a gay male ever, you can't give blood ever. And if you've had sex with someone from Africa, you can't give blood. And if you've done illegal IV drugs, you can't give blood.
The FDA has strict rules and I know a lot of it is stupid, but its just how the RC has to function to be able to give people any blood at all.
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It is really horrible, but believe me, the Red Cross isn't filled with homophobic anythings. I couldn't be there otherwise.
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Wow, I did not know that. Good to hear, in a way, because it makes me feel a little more positively towards the Red Cross, although one bad experience was enough for me.
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In other aspects of the job, however, I bet that working for the Red Cross is extremely rewarding. Bravo!
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