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CAN GAY MEN DONATE BLOOD CALIFORNIA FULL
He asked the New York Blood Center to join in his push for a full reversal of the FDA ban on gay male donors. “I'm glad that in response to concerns by the LGBTQ community - including both Lukus Estok, a gay COVID-19 survivor, who was turned away from donating plasma, and now me - the New York Blood Center has announced a timeline for updating its donation protocols,” Hoylman said in a statement.īut he added, “With such a dire need for donations, it’s a shame eligible gay and bisexual men still can’t donate blood to the New York Blood Center.” It simultaneously put out a call for healthy blood donors, saying earlier this week that the “need for blood has rebounded to pre-COVID-19 levels, but the blood supply is dangerously low.” It anticipated greater need as regions of the state reopen and elective surgeries begin again. The organization hopes to welcome new donors by early June. “We received that at the end of last week and immediately began the process of modifying our computer systems, updating all of our procedures and training our 400 staff members.” “We have been waiting for the FDA to approve the language in our donor questionnaire that details these changes,” the spokesperson said. A spokesperson said the organization was an advocate for the FDA changes. The New York Blood Center in a statement cited administrative hurdles to its adoption of the eased restrictions. State Senator Brad Hoylman who is openly gay, said he qualified to donate under the new rules and tried to give blood at a New York Blood Center facility on May 6 but was turned away. Amid the Coronavirus pandemic, the FDA amended those guidelines to allow for donations from men who’ve refrained from sex with other men for three months.
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Food and Drug Administration previously banned men who’ve had sex with men from donating blood unless they’ve been celibate for one year. "Our blood banks will work diligently to determine a process for the reinstatement of eligible donors who were deferred under the previous MSM policy however, it is important to understand that this process will take time.The FDA on April 2nd relaxed its restrictions on gay and bisexual men donating blood after a decades-long ban.īut the New York Blood Center says it can’t implement those changes until early June, even as it put out an urgent call for donors.
CAN GAY MEN DONATE BLOOD CALIFORNIA UPDATE
"While the final FDA guidance describes a pathway for previously deferred donors to give blood, it will take several months for blood centers to update their computer systems, modify processes and procedures, train staff and implement these extensive changes," the statement added. "This policy change aligns the MSM donor deferral period with those for other activities that may pose a similar risk of transfusion-transmissible infections." "AABB, America's Blood Centers and the Red Cross support the FDA's decision to change the MSM blood donation policy from a lifetime deferral to a one-year deferral," the agencies stated.
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However, three of the largest blood donation agencies in the nation - the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB), America's Blood Centers and the American Red Cross – have released a joint statement in support of the FDA decision. While blood banks typically follow federal guidelines regarding donor qualifications, establishments may voluntarily elect more stringent donor deferral criteria, the FDA states on its website.