As of Monday, the New York Blood Center says it is officially welcoming gay and bisexual men to donate blood at their physical locations – and at blood drives – across the tri-state area.
In 1985, the FDA implemented a lifetime ban on giving blood on men who had sex with men.
"For the blood industry as a whole, it's a huge win," said Chelsey Smith, a spokeswoman for the New York Blood Center. "It means that more donors are now going to be eligible to donate blood, which means more patients are going to be saved." "If you answer yes to that question, you will then be asked about a history of anal sex in the past three months. So if you answer yes to both of those questions, you will be deferred for three months."
But Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease expert with Johns Hopkins University, says that while overall the revised policy change from the FSA is "a great step forward," it could go even further.
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