Gay and Bi men
in the UK can now donate blood without any restriction!
The United
Kingdom’s health experts have decided to remove the 3 month abstinence
requirement for men who have sex with other men (MSM), according to the Guardian. Though, this removal is limited
to only a certain type of man. Specifically, men who are in long-term
relationships with another man. Plus, they will have to wait until next summer
for the policy change to go through, according to NHS Blood and Transplant
(NHSBT).
Once this
policy change goes into effect, risk assessments will be taken by individual
donors. Each donor, who has been partnered for three months or more without any
known exposure to risky sexual behavior, will take a questionnaire. This
questionnaire will then assess if risky behavior, such as having sex while
under the influence of drugs, was actually enacted.
According to USA Today, this announcement came after the
Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs, advised the U.K.
health departments to consider the changes. This recommendation was due the
positive results from a report by the For Assessment of Individual Risk.
This
announcement has received praise and celebration from LGBTQ health advocates. Ethan
Spibey, the founder of FreedomToDonate, applauded the change.
“Almost six
years ago, our group of volunteers set out to rewrite the rules that had
perpetuated inequality and prevented thousands of potentially safe donors from
donating for too long,” he said in a statement. “Today, we welcome a pioneering
new policy and are immensely proud that more people than ever will be able to
fairly give the life-saving gift of blood.”
“This landmark
change to blood donation is safe and it will allow many more people, who have
previously been excluded by donor selection criteria, to take the opportunity
to help save lives,” Britain’s health secretary, Matt Hancock, said in another statement.
Michael Brady,
the medical director for Terrence Higgins Trust, also welcomed the change.
Though, Brady noted that “there is certainly more work to do.”
He remarked,
“We will continue to work to ensure that our blood donation service is
inclusive, evidence based and both maximises the numbers who can donate while
ensuring our blood supply is safe.”
SOURCE: INSTINCT MAG
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