Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
20 Attorneys General, Including California, Want Rules On Gay Men Blood Donors Eased
A donor gives at a blood drive held this week at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library. (Chris Carlson/AP)
()
Selena Simmons-Duffin | NPR
Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily coronavirus newsletter. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.
Attorneys general from 20 states sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Wednesday calling on the agency to further ease rules on gay and bisexual men donating blood.
"The discriminatory restrictions against blood donations by healthy gay and bisexual Americans have persisted for far too long," they write.
Support for LAist comes from
Those restrictions began in the early days of the AIDS epidemic. In 1983, the FDA banned gay and bisexual men from ever being eligible to donate blood to protect people receiving blood transfusions from the possibility of getting infected with HIV.
In 2015, that lifetime ban was replaced by a waiting period -- men who have sex with men could donate blood if they had not had sex in the last twelve months.
DON'T MISS ANY L.A. CORONAVIRUS NEWS
Get our daily newsletters for the latest on COVID-19 and other top local headlines.
Terms of Use and Privacy Policy
With the nation's blood supply in shortage due to the social distancing measures in place to slow the spread of the coronavirus, that deferral period was just shortened to three months.
Support for LAist comes from
But the attorneys general -- all Democrats, from California, Michigan, Virginia and nine other states -- argue that the shorter wait doesn't go far enough. Targeting gay and bisexual men is discriminatory, they say. Instead, blood donors should be screened based on risky behavior, as it is in other countries.
"The revised guidance still precludes many LGBTQ Americans from fully contributing to the blood shortages while still requiring a waiting period for healthy individuals," they write.
They cite a 2014 analysis from the Williams Institute at UCLA estimating that completely lifting the ban on gay men would produce 300,000 pints of blood annually, which could save a million lives.
Another problem they cite: The new three-month waiting period prevents gay and bisexual men who have recovered from COVID-19 from donating plasma to treat others who are infected with the coronavirus. Preliminary studies suggest the treatment can improve recovery from COVID-19.
"America is in the midst of a public health crisis," Dr. Jack Turban wrote in Vox last week. "Old homophobic policies are making it worse: leaving trauma victims without donor blood and withholding plasma donations that could potentially save people dying from the coronavirus."
In the letter to HHS, the attorneys general ask the FDA to "immediately clarify" that gay and bisexual men who have COVID-19 antibodies can donate plasma.
Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
Support for LAist comes from
MORE ON CORONAVIRUS
- Your No-Panic Guide To All The Changing Rules In LA
- Where To Get Financial Assistance, Food And Other Help
- Tracking The Spread Of COVID-19
- Have A Question? We Will Answer It
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
After rising for years, the number of residential installations in the city of Los Angeles began to drop in 2023. The city isn’t subject to recent changes in state incentives, but other factors may be contributing to the decline. -
The L.A. City Council approved the venue change Wednesday, which organizers say will save $12 million in infrastructure costs.
-
Taxes on the sale of some newer apartment buildings would be lowered under a plan by Sacramento lawmakers to partially rein in city Measure ULA.
-
The union representing the restaurant's workers announced Tuesday that The Pantry will welcome back patrons after suddenly shutting down six months ago.
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake.
-
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
Best of LAist