Gay blood ban may end
The Israeli Health Ministry may end a ban on blood donations from gay men with proposed changes allowing men who had same-sex intercourse 10 or more years ago to donate.
A Health Ministry advisory committee on transfusion medicine will discuss the changes next month.
Last month, Labor Party chairwoman MK Shelly Yachimovich, together with the Labor Party’s gay division, wrote to Magen David Adom’s National Blood Bank CEO Eli Bin and to Health Ministry director general Dr Roni Gamzu, asking to correct the discrimination against the gay community.
“The question about sex between men, without asking the donor whether he had had unprotected sex, is a serious deficiency,” Yachimovich wrote. “Under such circumstances [unprotected sex], there is a significant risk of AIDS infection even among heterosexuals, yet the questionnaire doesn’t address this.”
In Australia, men who have sex with men (MSM) are excluded for one year after homosex. Recently Britain announced it would be introducing the same policy.
Israel is now considering a reduction in its exclusion period from life to ten years.
This is news?
This issue is a lot more complicated than it is often painted. Many groups are excluding from donating blood because of potential pathogens, and for gay men it is because of the massive prevalence of HIV in our communities. The screening process is not infallible, and the risk of infection via tranfusion is extremely high.
In terms of wellbeing, who’s right is greater: your ‘right’ to donate blood, or a tranfusion patient’s right (who could also end up being you) to not have infected blood pumped into their veins?
I wrote more about this issue on my blog here: http://bipolarbear.co.nz/2011/09/13/i-dont-want-your-blood/
I know what it feels like to be denied from helping others because of society’s ignorance and fear about certain people. I was denied from donating blood because I don’t talk. It was my first time giving blood too. I started a petition to prevent something like this from happening again:
http://www.change.org/petitions/houchin-community-blood-bank-stop-denying-those-who-are-unable-to-speak-from-donating-blood
I would really like to be able to donate blood at my blood bank before I graduate this May. I would appreciate help from anyone wanting to end this kind of discrimination .