FDA removes sexual abstinence restrictions that barred homosexuals from donating blood

The policy changes the 2020 rule that prevented donations from LGBT individuals who have had sex in the three months prior to donating.

Published by

Verónica Silveri Pazos

12 de mayo, 2023

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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will allow homosexual and bisexual people to donate blood without the need to abstain from sexual intercourse in the three months prior to donation. This new policy eliminates the restriction established in 2020.

This policy eliminates time-based deferrals and screening questions specific to men who have sex with men (MSM) and women who have sex with MSM.

This policy had already been changed in 2015, the year in which the FDA allowed homosexuals to donate blood for the first time with a one-year abstinence requirement. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research stated:

The implementation of these recommendations will represent a significant milestone for the agency and the LGBTQI+ community.

"Individual risk-based questions"

The final report recommended a series of "individual risk-based questions" to determine eligibility. These will be the same for all donors, regardless of sexual orientation or gender .

The agency argued that the change maintains the safety of the blood supply and avoids the risk of disease transmission. It also assured that they relied on the best scientific evidence to make the change. According to Marks:

The FDA has worked diligently to evaluate our policies and ensure we had the scientific evidence to support individual risk assessment for donor eligibility while maintaining appropriate safeguards to protect recipients of blood products. ... The FDA is committed to working closely with the blood collection industry to help ensure timely implementation of the new recommendations and we will continue to monitor the safety of the blood supply once this individual risk-based approach is in place.

Eligibility based on the number of sexual partners

All potential donors who report having sex with a new person or more than one person in the past three months would be deferred for three months to reduce the likelihood of transmissions of diseases such as HIV and others:

All prospective donors who report having a new sexual partner, or more than one sexual partner in the past three months, and anal sex in the past three months, would be deferred to reduce the likelihood of donations by individuals with new or recent HIV infection who may be in the window period for detection of HIV by nucleic acid testing.

In contrast, a donor who claims to have had no new sexual partners but has had sex in the last three months with the same partner may still be eligible to donate if all other criteria are met.