Gay men still banned from donating blood

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will launch a study to determine if a decades-old law, that prohibits gay and bisexual men from donating blood, is still necessary.

Senator Patty Murray, D-Wash., sent a letter of support to Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius Monday, calling the legislation outdated and discriminatory. The letter was led by Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., and Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill.

Currently, any man who has had sex with another man since 1977 is banned for life from donating blood.

“This marks another step in the push for equality and understanding for the LGBT community,” Sen. Murray said of the study. “I am hopeful the findings will reverse the current discriminatory policy and allow for healthy Americans to once again help in the effort to save lives through blood donation.”

The policy was first enacted in the 1980’s to address the risk of AIDS transmission through blood transfusion.

“In the 27 years since, we have seen vast advances in blood screening technology, policy changes in other nations, and staunch opposition from the nation’s blood banks who have called the current ban ‘medically and scientifically unwarranted,'” the letter read.

Murray said the policy turns away healthy, willing donors at a time when the country’s blood banks routinely face blood shortages. The letter also called the current policy a “double-standard,” as men who have sex with HIV-positive women are required by the Federal Drug Administration to wait only a year before attempting to donate.