FDA Proposes Nixing Blood Donor Deferral Period For Gay, Bisexual Men

FDA on Friday (Jan. 27) published draft guidance that proposes eliminating the 3-month deferral on blood donations for men who have sex with men in an attempt to move toward a gender-inclusive, individual risk-based approach to assessing blood donor eligibility, after years of calls from some lawmakers, LGBTQ advocates, and medical and policy experts who argued the agency’s deferral policy is discriminatory against gay and bisexual men. The draft guidance also proposes revisions to the donor history questionnaire to include...