After yesterday’s hearings, the Health and Human Services’ Advisory Committee on Blood Safety and Availability today voted 6-9 against a recommendation to the ban on blood donations from men who have had sex with men even once since 1977.
Health & Human Services Blood Safety Committee: Don’t Repeal Gay Blood Ban
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jimstoic
Maybe it’s time for gay employees in states with employment nondiscrimination laws to start filing complaints about discriminatory employer-sanctioned blood drives.
Bill
I would never in a million years even consider giving my blood to a heterosexual to begin with.
So there, breeders.
Wade MacMorrighan
So, did they release a statement why those opposed voted in favor of the ban? A ban that doesn’t make ANY rationale sense!
lamismaluna
If blood is always in such high demand, this seems like a silly way to prevent getting blood from a large group of people who would be willing to do so. Shame for the people that need it.
Bill Perdue
These people are swine. Like your typical christer and islamist bigots, they’re trying to make us appear as a lesser and diseased sub-species.
They’re confusing science with cult superstition and coming up with bigotry.
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The HHS Advisory Committee on Blood Safety and Availability duly deliberates
Bill Perdue
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Michael
You need to follow the money and zealous attorneys when thinking about this decision. Hospital boards and their insurance carriers are far more concerned over the risk of monetary loss via potential litigation than the risk of “bad blood.” Medical science and public health concerns are a very distant, secondary consideration.
Ryanthehulk
Like most MSM people, I just lie when they ask me and donate anyway. The only way to get them to repeal this is for every person who falls under the MSM category since 1977 to stop giving blood.
scott ny'er
They need to not only repeal the ban but change the criteria.
Lamar
Could someone please explain this to me because I really don’t understand, how do they actually know if you have had sex with men do they seriously just ask do you or don’t you???
Phil
Being forced to lie about my sexuality in order to give blood is like being forced to wear a beard to appear a man. I’m not going to do it, and if you don’t get my blood, well, too bad. You’ve got my spite.
jeffree
@Lamar: Yes they ask: Before donating blood you fill out a form. Answer “wrong” on any question and you get deselected.
Where I used to work, we had quarterly blood drives, and the “goal” was 90% participation. The person in charge was very agressive and went from cubicle to cubicle to sign people up.
All within ear shot of everyone else.
I finally told her I had a blood clotting disorder and couldn’t donate! She never asked me again.
Of course that was a lie, but in a place where the boss constantly said how much he hated “faaaags” I didn’t want to cause a ruckus.
I found out later that she asked her church to pray to Jésus to cure my hemophilia! 😀
HealthEgg
Medical science and public health concerns are a very distant, secondary consideration.
craigers
Screw them. They won’t get my blood. I won’t lie and they don’t deserve it. Even if they overturned the ban I wouldn’t give. They have gone too many years being bigots.
damon459
I was honest with the questions at 17 and was put on the lifetime ban list fuck’m I can always donate to myself if I need surgery my doctor also know I won’t take blood unless there is no other option and in many trama situations saline can be used so I’ll take that over blood from lying breeders.