Banished Gay Blood Ban

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services voted 16-2 today to end a 31-year blood ban preventing gay and bisexual men from donating blood in favor of alternative policies. The federal agency’s Blood Advisory Committee in favor of a one year deferral period that would permit blood donation from some men who have sex with men.

According to Bloomberg News and the National Gay Blood Drive, the 16-2 vote included a recommendation that men who have sex with men be allowed to donate blood after a one year period of abstaining from sex. Their recommendation will be considered by a Food and Drug Administration advisory group at a Dec. 2 meeting.

“It’s a step in the right direction,” said National Gay Blood Drive founder Ryan James Yezak.

If the ban is completely lifted, an additional 615,300 pints of blood would be donated by gay and bisexual men, saving up to 1.8 million people, according to a September study from the University of California.