FDA To Review Lifetime Ban on Blood Donation by Gay and Bisexual Men

The United States Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday that it plans to lift the life time ban on gay and bisexual men on donating blood, which many believed was no longer relevant in today's world.

The FDA plans to replace  it with a new policy barring donations from men who have had man-on-man sex in the last one year. A similar policy is in effect in countries including Australia, Japan and the U.K.

This ban was imposed 31 years ago when the AIDS crisis was just beginning and the world had very little knowledge about the disease and its progress. 

But many people are not happy with the policy as they believe that the one year of celibacy requirement from gay men is slightly unrealistic and in real terms hardly translates into a policy shift."This new policy does not require heterosexual blood donors to be celibate for one year. Some may believe this is a step forward, but in reality, requiring celibacy for a year is a de facto lifetime ban," Gay Men's Health Crisis, a New York-based nonprofit that supports AIDS prevention and care, said after the announcement, reports the Associated Press. 

"The FDA intends to issue a draft guidance recommending this proposed change in policy in 2015, which will also include an opportunity for public comment, " said  FDA Commissioner Margaret A Hamburg in a statement.

 FDA Deputy Director Dr. Peter Marks said completing the process might take time and it was difficult to put an exact time fame, he added,  "we commit to working as quickly as possible on this issue," reports the Associated Press.

Government figures say gay men represent about 2 percent of the U.S. population yet account for at least 62 percent of all new HIV infections in the U.S., according to a report.

The American Red Cross estimates the risk of getting an HIV-positive blood donation is 1 in 1.5 million.