Australia is the first country to allow gay, bisexual and trans plasma donation
"Today will be a turning point for Lifeblood and the LGBTQIA+ community," says Lifeblood CEO Stephen Cornelissen
By Aaron Sugg
Australia has lifted its ban on blood and plasma donations from sexually active gay and bisexual men, as well as transgender women who have sex with men, effective today (14 July).
The removal of these restrictions makes Australia the first country in the world to eliminate all sexual activity-based eligibility rules for plasma and blood donation.
Donors who take pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV will now be allowed to donate plasma but will remain restricted from donating blood.
People with HIV, or those with a partner who has HIV, are still not eligible to donate either plasma or blood.
“Today will be a turning point for Lifeblood and the LGBTQIA+ community” – Stephen Cornelissen
Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, CEO Stephen Cornelissen said in a news release: “While the rules were put in place to ensure a safe blood supply in the past, we know they have contributed to the stigma faced by many and hope today will be a turning point for Lifeblood and the LGBTQIA+ community, and that people will feel welcome to come forward to donate their life-saving plasma.”
Prior to today, the eligibility criteria aimed to prevent HIV transmission through donations. Under the updated guidelines, an estimated 24,000 additional people across the country will now become eligible to donate plasma.
Lifeblood anticipates around 95,000 additional plasma donations annually.
As part of the gender-neutral assessment changes, donors will no longer be asked whether they have had sex with men in the past three months. All donors will answer the same questions about sexual activity, regardless of gender or sexuality.
“Thousands of donations of life-saving plasma” – Dash Heath-Paynter
People with new or multiple sexual partners will be able to donate if they have not had anal sex in the past three months.
Dash Heath-Paynter, Chief Executive of Health Equity Matters, said the change “potentially unlocks thousands of donations of life-saving plasma.”
Those in a monogamous relationship for six months or more will be eligible to donate blood from 2026, after the donor questionnaire has been updated to reflect the groundbreaking changes.