Getting rid of a discriminatory practice… albeit somewhat slowly.
New Zealand and Britain eased the rules on blood donations by gay and bisexual men, and men who have sex with men (MSM), as both countries continue to face supply issues brought about by Covid-19. This development follows the June 2020 move of the American Red Cross to change its restrictions on blood donations from gay and bisexual men, and other MSM, also because of supply issues. Australia also said it would follow suit, though the change will not apply until January 31, 2021.
The antiquated, yet still current practice is to ban MSM from donating blood within 12 months of having sex with another man. But starting June 8, the wait time will be cut to three months.
Just to emphasize: In all the countries where changes were introduced, though, it is not a pro-LGBTQIA move; instead, there’s severe shortage of blood donations in due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
Particular to New Zealand, the government cut the celibacy period from a year to three months, regardless of whether they had used condoms, the New Zealand Blood Service said on its website.
Meanwhile, in Britain – which previously had a three-month deferral period – a behavior-based policy will now be used. This means that anyone — gay or straight — who has had anal sex with multiple partners or a new partner will not be able to donate blood.
The antiquated restrictions on gay and bi men donating blood was imposed by many countries at the height of the HIV and AIDS pandemic in the 1980s.
