John Kerry Supports Gay Blood

by Michael Jones · 2010-03-04 13:19:00 UTC
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BloodIs there movement afoot to pressure the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to overturn the nearly three-decades old ban on blood donations from gay men? Sure seems like it, and it's being led by U.S. Senator John Kerry, who along with 18 other colleagues sent a letter to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg urging her to review the ban on gay blood, and work toward removing the ban.

According to Kerry, there's just no basis in science for keeping a ban on gay blood in place.

"Not a single piece of scientific evidence supports the ban,” Kerry said. “A law that was once considered medically justified is today simply outdated and needs to end."

Kerry's right. It's time to pressure FDA Commissioner Hamburg to work toward overturning the ban on gay blood. There's no scientific evidence for it, it punishes gay men who would be well-qualified donors, and it continues to have an impact on the nation's blood supply, which frequently dips to dangerously low levels. Let's overturn this policy today.

Sen. Kerry also notes in an op-ed in Bay Windows that major professional health organizations have come down on the side of overturning the gay blood ban.

"The three largest blood donation organizations in our country -- the American Red Cross, America's Blood Centers, and AABB (formerly the American Association of Blood Banks) -- all agree, calling the ban 'medically and scientifically unwarranted,'" Kerry writes.

His words fit nicely with a new campaign by the Gay Men's Health Center (GMHC) in New York. Last week they issued a report, "A Drive for Change: Reforming U.S. Blood Donation Policies," that spelled out a series of concrete steps the FDA could take in order to make sure that blood is safe, but also make sure that the FDA isn't discriminating against a qualified donor pool of gay men.

"Across the country, we experience critical shortfalls of blood supplies on a consistent basis," said Janet Weinberg, Chief Operating Officer at GMHC.  "Yet only five percent (or less) of Americans that are able to donate blood do so.  We call on the FDA to re-examine discriminatory policies that categorically exclude potential blood donors, including gay and bisexual men."

If you agree, add your voice to Sen. Kerry's and the GMHC's by urging FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg to overturn the ban on gay blood. With blood shortages a dime a dozen in the U.S., the moment to do this is now. There's simply no reason to delay.

Photo credit: SharonaGott

Michael Jones is a Change.org Editor. He has worked in the field of human rights communications for a decade, most recently for Harvard Law School.
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