The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday eased restrictions on blood donations from men who have sex with men.
The updated guidelines do away with a requirement that men who have sex with men abstain from sex for three months prior to giving blood.
According to the new guidelines, the agency will utilize a questionnaire of “individual risk-based questions” for every donor regardless of sexual orientation or gender.
Gay and bisexual men in monogamous relationships for at least three months will be allowed to donate blood.
#BREAKING: FDA updates blood donation policy to include gay, bisexual men https://t.co/uZbQ6rl3U9 pic.twitter.com/kxkCFU2Ob7
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The agency announced plans for the change in January and said this week the new approach can now be implemented by blood banks.
The FDA said the new policy reflects the latest scientific data available and aligns with similar rules in the U.K. and Canada.
More from the AP:
Gay rights groups have long opposed blanket restrictions on who can give blood, saying they discriminate.
Medical societies including the American Medical Association have also said such exclusions are unnecessary given advances in blood testing.
Anyone who has ever tested positive for HIV will continue to be ineligible to donate blood.
Those taking pills to prevent HIV through sexual contact will also still be barred, until three months after their last dose. The FDA noted that the medications, known as PrEP, can delay the detection of the virus in screening tests.
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This is better, but still not great. https://t.co/l9aVfEPRvG
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