Health Canada has approved the lifting of the blood donation ban for gay and bisexual men as well as others in the LGBTQ2S+ community.
The federal regulator announced the move in a statement on Thursday.
Health Canada says it’s greenlighting a submission from the Canadian Blood Services to remove the current ban on donations from men who have had sex with men in the last three months.
The practice has been long criticized as discriminatory.
“Today’s authorization is a significant milestone toward a more inclusive blood donation system nationwide, and builds on progress in scientific evidence made in recent years,” the news release says. “Over the past decade, Health Canada has authorized several changes to the donor deferral period for men who have sex with men, from a lifetime restriction to five years in 2013, to one year in 2016 and to three months in 2019.”
The new policy will see all donors screened, regardless of gender or sexuality, for “high-risk sexual behaviours.”
“Today’s approval from Health Canada is the result of over a decade of work to make participation in Canada’s Lifeline as inclusive as possible, without compromising the safety of biological products or the security of supply,” says Dr. Graham Sher, CEO of Canadian Blood Services, in a news release.
The Canadian Blood Services expects the new policy will be in place by September 30th.
