F.D.A.Gay men and other blood donation guidelines relaxed

Food and Drug Administration Announced on Thursday He has greatly relaxed blood donation recommendations from gay and bisexual men, and has reduced the wait time for men who have sex with men to give blood from one year to three months in hopes of improvement. Significant decline in supply During the coronavirus pandemic.

During the first 12 months of the waiting period, Discriminatory and outdated Introduced in 2015 as an alternative to the lifetime ban on blood donation by F.D.A.

The ban was enacted in 1983, early in the AIDS epidemic, when little was known about the human immunodeficiency virus that caused the disease. Review of F.D.A. Long ban, But restrictions were needed to keep the blood supply safe and kept free from HIV

In support of Thursday’s change, the agency said statement Based on a recent study, “we concluded that the current policy on specific donor eligibility criteria can be changed without compromising the safety of the blood supply.”

After the F.D.A.pandemic ended, he said that the new recommendations would remain.

L.G.B.T.Q. supporters praised Thursday’s latest move by the authorities, but said they would work to extend the waiting period completely.

“Salakate Ellis, President and Chief Executive Officer of L.G.B.T.Q. GLAAD, today knows that Americans are holding their heads and that our voice always overcomes discrimination. statement On Thursday. “This is a victory for all of us who spoke out against the discriminatory ban of gay and bisexual men who donate blood.”

F.D.A. also previously recommended that women with male sexual partners who had sex with men in the past year not donate blood. Thursday’s amendment has shortened that period to three months.

During the outbreak, the move occurred as thousands of blood drives were canceled across the country following the closure of schools, churches, and other facilities. Some possible donors and volunteers avoid blood donation centers due to social distance guidelines.

The organizers have introduced new measures to keep donations flowing, including checking the temperature of staff and donors, providing hand sanitizers, and increasing the distance between donors.

Nevertheless, doctors and organizations that support blood donation emphasize the need for blood donation to maintain a stable blood supply.

“Maintaining an adequate blood supply is essential to public health,” said a statement in the F.D.A. “Blood donors support patients of all ages-victims of accidents and burns, patients undergoing heart surgery and organ transplants, and those who fight cancer and other life-threatening conditions.”

“There are still gunshot wounds and car accidents across the country,” said Dr. Amesh Adalha, an infectious disease physician at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

“The reason people need a blood transfusion will not really be affected by this,” he said.

F.D.A, even before the pandemic. There were voice choirs seeking to lift or change restrictions on blood donation from gay and bisexual men.

In November, the American Red Cross shortened the postponement period for men who had sex with F.D.A.men to three months, pointing out similar moves in the UK and Canada. On Wednesday, New York Democrats Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez sent letters to government agencies requesting a policy change.

“This was no longer what we needed to maintain,” said Dr. Adalha. “These types of limitations didn’t really make sense in the age of modern diagnostic technology.”

“It’s too bad for a pandemic to really push this, because it should have been pushed faster when technology was able to secure the blood supply,” he said. Said.

Dr. David W. Rosenthal, medical director of Northwell Health in Great Neck, New York, said the move has a positive impact on the current lack of blood supply.

“We may be talking about up to 11% of the population that we identify as members of L.G.B.T.communities,” he said. “By increasing the blood supply so that these additional individuals can donate blood, it will certainly be more accessible to those who need it.”

F.D.A. Enacted a lifetime ban on male donors who have sex with men in 1983, a year that became known as HIV. Was found. At the time, there was no way to test blood donation for the presence of the virus.

F.D.A. Abolition of lifetime ban In December 2015, gay rights groups called this move a major step in ending what they consider discriminatory national policy. Critics argued that gay men (such as some heterosexual men and women) were at much higher risk for HIV transmission and that donations had to be considered individually. More infected than the general population.

“Alfonso David, head of the FDA’s changing human rights campaign, said in a statement. Creating policies based on identity as opposed to risk would be irrational given the current Covid-19 epidemic. He said.

“It’s more important than ever to put science and facts ahead of fear and prejudice.”