FDA Policy Bans Gay and Bisexual Men From Donating Blood | | 
THERE IS A PLEA OUT FOR MORE BLOOD... JUST NOT OURS. Are you aware that since 1983, any man who admits to EVER having had sex with another man is placed on a lifetime deferral list and is ineligible to donate blood? This is due to the ignorance and fear surrounding AIDS in the 80's.
ALL blood that is donated is tested for HIV and many other diseases. There is simply no need for this discriminatory ban to continue in this day and age.
Please do not misunderstand -- The Red Cross is not responsible for this. It is the FDA who makes the rules, and the Red Cross must follow them. The bigotry continues: In May 2007, the FDA once again voted to uphold this ban. They must be stopped!
The FDA must be persuaded to lift this ban, as their counterparts have done in Spain, Italy, Australia, Switzerland, and even Russia! Please sign the petition and send it to anyone who may be interested in supporting equality and ending discrimination. If you are one of us who is ineligible to donate, please urge someone else to donate on your behalf. They still need blood, even if it's not ours.
Thank you, and PLEASE, pass it on! We will make a difference!
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THIS WEEK'S FEATURED COMMENT FROM THE PETITION "To Whom it May Concern: I'm just an eighteen year old kid trying to do what I've been told is the right thing for years. I'm not trying to cause trouble, I just want to give. I've given blood once before and at the time I was a virgin, but now I'm treated as though my blood is impure. My blood runs red just as any other American's, and I am a healthy human being. They say each time you donate you can save three lives; that's three lives I can never save six fold each year for the rest of my life. All because I had sex, safe sex mind you, and told the truth about it. I was always taught that the truth would set me free, but now the truth keeps me under a glass ceiling. I'm not going to rant, rave, and argue; I'm just regretting the current policy. My life expectancy is 81 years I'm 18. In the 63 remaining years I'm expected to live I would be able to donate 6 times per year and help 3 people per donation. That's over 1000 people from me alone. I think it's a pity we waste all that help. Sincerely, ShaVaughn Peterson, Virginia" Wow. Great thoughts. Thank you. I've never heard of this! How long has this been going on? | | This policy, about which most people are ignorant, dates back to 1990, when the Food and Drug Administration began banning blood donations from any man who has had sex with another man (MSM) since 1977. The policy started as a guideline in 1983, before blood could be tested for HIV. They now ask men if they have had sex ("even once") with another man since 1977, and if the answer is yes, they are put on a lifetime deferral list. In South Africa, MSM only have to refrain from sexual contact for 6 months. In Australia, 12 months. Here in the US, it's 29 years. |
Has anyone tried to change it before?
| | At an FDA hearing in 2000, the last time the agency reviewed its policy, the Red Cross testified in favor of keeping what the industry calls a "lifetime deferral" for gay men. The FDA's panel of specialists voted 7-6 to maintain the ban. |
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What can I do to help? Spread the word. Sign the petition. Circulate the petition. Write letters to the FDA committee members. Ask someone else to donate on your behalf if you're a gay man, or donate yourself if you are able. American patients NEED blood! They have been arbitrarily and needlessly discriminating against a huge part of this country. Until this ban is lifted, we must increase awareness of it and work for change. We can make a difference! 
Let Us Give
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