Gay men are no longer discriminated against when donating blood

Men who have sex with men are no longer punished for donating blood. Swissmedic has approved an application from blood donation SKR Switzerland for uniform criteria. They apply from November.

From then on, affected men will no longer have to wait a year after their last sexual contact to donate blood. The blood donation SKR Switzerland and the Swiss institute for therapeutic products Swissmedic announced this on Tuesday.

The current 12-month waiting rule has been in effect since 2017. Before then, men who had sex with men were generally barred from donating blood. The future scheme is based on an updated risk assessment that the blood donation SRC Switzerland has developed over a two-year period with a group of experts. According to Swissmedic, it takes into account the epidemiological situation in Switzerland and data from countries that have already adapted their criteria.

Swissmedic had to decide on the application because blood products are classified as medicines and fall under the Therapeutic Products Act. From November, the same criteria for new sexual contacts will apply to everyone. Whether they were heterosexual or homosexual no longer matters.

In concrete terms, this means that blood may no longer be donated four months after the last new sexual contact. This period is extended to twelve months if someone has had sexual contact with more than two partners in the past four months. (saw/sda)