Peter Tatchell: ‘Gay blood ban should be cut to 3 months’
By Sam Rigby
Political campaigner Peter Tatchell has called for the UK government to allow gay and bisexual men to donate blood within 3 months of having sex.
In a blog published on The Huffington Post, he described the current 12 month ban as “unjustified discrimination based on sexual orientation”.
Putting forward his suggestion for a new donation process, he pointed out that “similar criteria” should also apply to heterosexual blood donors who have engaged in risky sexual behaviour.
Tatchell wrote: “The current ban on gay and bisexual men donating blood within 12 months of them last having sex is medically unjustified discrimination based on sexual orientation. It is premised on a generalisation about men who have sex with men.
“The government should cut the basic exclusion period to three months, dependent on the risk factors associated with each individual donor. These risk factors include not only HIV but also other sexually-transmitted infections (STIs).
“The only gay and bisexual donors who should be excluded are those who have engaged in risky, unprotected sexual behaviour and who’s HIV, hepatitis and other STI status cannot be accurately determined because of the delay between the date of infection and the date when the bacteria or virus and antibodies manifest and become detectable in their blood.”
He added: “Bizarrely, the current policy of the blood service in England makes no distinction between sex with a condom and sex without one. Any oral or anal sex between men in the previous 12 months – even with a condom – is grounds for refusing a donor.”
Read Tatchell’s blog in full over on The Huffington Post.
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