Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
FDA Rolls Back Blood-Donor Ban For Gay And Bisexual Men, But There's A Catch
Gay and bisexual men in the United States are no longer barred from donating blood, under a policy change announced Monday by the Food and Drug Administration, but there's a big catch: Men still cannot donate if they have had sex with other men in the previous 12 months. (Painter, 12/21)
Monday's policy shift was first proposed in late 2014 and follows years of lobbying by medical groups and gay rights groups, who said the previous ban was outdated and perpetuated negative stereotypes. (12/21)
"Relying on sound scientific evidence, we've taken great care to ensure the revised policy continues to protect our blood supply," said Peter Marks, deputy director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. In 1983, the FDA banned gay and bisexual men from ever being eligible to donate blood to protect people receiving blood transfusions from the possibility of getting infected with the human immunodeficiency virus, which causes AIDS. (Stein, 12/21)
