MR: Call on Feds / States to follow Qld lead on lifting gay blood ban

Media Release

Monday October 9th 2023

CALL ON FEDS / STATES TO FOLLOW QLD LEAD ON LIFTING GAY BLOOD BAN

"Plasma-only donation will be to blood donation what civil unions were to marriage equality, a poor substitute for equity and fairness." - Dr Sharon Dane

Gay blood donation advocates have called on the Federal and State Governments to follow Queensland's lead and support an end to Australia's gay blood ban.

Queensland Health Minister, Shannon Fentiman, has written to her Federal counterpart, Mark Butler, asking him to support an end to the gay blood ban through the adoption of a new policy of assessing all donors for their individual risk regardless of sexuality or gender of partner.

The Red Cross Lifeblood Service has proposed gay men be allowed to give plasma, but advocates and the Queensland Government say that should be extended to include whole blood.

Let Us Give campaign spokesperson, Dr Sharon Dane, said,

"The Let Us Give campaign applauds the Queensland health minister for her stand in support of a safe and more equitable blood donor system."

"Assessing each donor for individual risk will maintain the safety of the blood supply while allowing much-needed donations from gay men, as well as bisexual men and trans women who have sex with men."

"This is why countries similar to Australia, like Canada, the UK and US, have lifted their gay blood bans and adopted individual risk assessment."

"We urge federal health minister, Mark Butler, to listen to Queensland's health minister, Shannon Fentiman, and move to adopt individual risk assessment as soon as possible."

"We also urge the other states and territories to follow Queensland's lead and support this overdue reform."

Dr Dane said Let Us Give does not support the proposal to only allow gay men to donate plasma.

“The Red Cross Lifeblood's proposal for gay men to be able to donate plasma but not whole blood will entrench a second-class status for gay donors."

"The problems of a two-tiered donor system was identified by Canadian research and was one of the reasons Canada abandoned its plasma-only trial and moved to individual risk assessment for whole blood donation instead."

"Plasma-only donation will be to blood donation what civil unions were to marriage equality, a poor substitute for equity and fairness."

Currently, gay men, and bisexual men and transgender women who have sex with men, can only donate blood if they have been sexually abstinent for three months.

The Red Cross Lifeblood Service has proposed the abstinence period be lifted for blood plasma but not whole blood.

The Federal Government's Therapeutic Goods Administration has agreed, but the states must also agree.

The Queensland decision comes in the wake of a successful motion at Labor's recent national conference endorsing individual risk assessment and an end to the current gay blood ban.

News report here: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/oct/09/restrictions-on-gay-men-donating-blood-should-be-scrapped-queensland-health-minister-says

For a copy of this statement on the web, click here

Sharon Dane can be contacted on 0403 895 268.

Alternative contact: Rodney Croome on 0409 010 668