FDA Still Bans Gay Men from Donating Blood

Despite opposition from homosexual rights groups, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) renewed its 1983 policy that prohibits any man having sex with another man since 1973 from donating blood. The FDA sites the increased risk of HIV among gay men for their decision to renew the policy. Activists point out that the ban is discriminatory against gay men. While men who have sex with high risk women are allowed back into the donor pool in twelve months, men who have sex with men are never allowed back into the pool, even if they practice safe sex.

What do you think of this policy? Should men who have sex with men be allowed to donate blood like everyone else? Join our discussion in the HIV forum and voice your opinion...be heard and affect change.

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