Italy, Israel, and several other countries have similar requirements.
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Gay and bisexual men undergo individual risk assessments instead of time-based bans in countries around the world, recently including Greece and France, according to international reports. Restrictions on blood donations from gay and bisexual men, who are considered to be at high risk for HIV or AIDS transmission, date back to the 1980s. In 2015, the guidance changed from a lifetime ban to a 12-month deferral, and the FDA determines the guidance used by all U.S. "Just like other individuals throughout the country, many people have sex on a regular basis, including with partners and spouses," said Sarah Warbelow, the legal director at the LGBTQ advocacy organization the Human Rights Campaign.Īndrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images, FILE Some advocates, including the Human Rights Campaign, say the FDA is moving too slowly on removing the restriction, saying that it's an outright ban on the ability of people, particularly gay and bisexual men, to donate blood. The agency changed the deferral period from 12 months to three months in November 2020 as blood donations fell and hospitals faced critical shortages during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Food and Drug Administration bars people who have had sex with gay or bisexual men from donating blood for three months following the most recent sexual contact because of fears of HIV in the blood supply.
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Despite this urgent need for donations, people who have sex with gay or bisexual men are still facing restrictions on their ability to give blood. is facing a national blood crisis, the "worst blood shortage in over a decade," the American Red Cross warns.