Off the wire
• Roundup: Aust'n FM defends involvement in Iraqi war amid damning Chilcot Report  • Tokyo stocks edge up in early trading on Wall Street's rally, more favorable yen  • Each Olympic, Paralympic event gets own pictogram for first time  • Dollar hovers around 101 yen line in early trade in Tokyo  • Feature: Mexico City hands out 15,000 whistles in bid to curb sexual harassment  • Belgian Van Avermaet grabs yellow jersey after winning Tour's 5th stage  • Chilean president ratifies free universal higher education goal  • 1st Ld Writethru: U.S. attorney general announces no charges against Hillary for her email practices  • Belarus wants normalization of relations with U.S.  • Roundup: Rio 2016 - Security fears dominate one month before Olympics  
You are here: 　 Home

Aust'n blood donor service under pressure to drop ban on gay men

Xinhua, July 7, 2016 Adjust font size:

A blood donation service in the Australian state of Tasmania is facing pressure to revoke its policy which bans gay men from giving blood.

The Red Cross Blood Service in Tasmania a body responsible for blood donation and related services in Australia is facing a winter shortage of donors, and has been called to drop its restrictions on gay men to help ease this shortfall.

It is believed 1,000 donors are needed in the month of July as the winter flu season settles in. The service has called for emergency services personnel to give blood, and encouraged other Tasmanians to donate.

The Blood Service has ruled that gay men should not be allowed to donate blood within 12 months of sex with another man to prevent the spread of HIV.

Former Tasmanian of the Year and gay rights activist, Rodney Croome, said thousands of gay men practising safe sex were being discriminated against.

"In Australia, when it comes to blood donation, we should screen potential donors for the safety of their sexual activity, not the gender of their sexual partner," Croome told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Thursday.

Croome said the ban deprived many people of the opportunity to help save lives.

"If they accepted blood from gay men who practise safe sex and are monogamous and have safe blood to give, that means there is more safe blood available to people in need," he said.

However, Red Cross Blood Service communications manager Erin Lagoudakis said the patient's safety was the priority.

"Blood safety policies are based on the current health surveillance data and that shows us that 90 percent of all newly acquired HIV infections is attributed to male-to-male sexual activity," Lagoudakis told the ABC on Thursday.

In December last year, a 30-year ban aimed at preventing the transmission of HIV was overturned in the U.S., therefore allowing gay men to donate blood 12 months after their last sexual encounter with another man.

Lagoudakis disputed claims that Australia's blood policy was discriminatory.

The service has committed to reviewing the policy in 2018. Endit