Rules effectively prohibiting all sexually active gay and bisexual men from donating blood and plasma were cancelled in Australia.
The rules originally introduced were to reduce the risk of donations for groups with higher exposure to HIV, and will be revoked starting next month after similar actions in the UK and the US.
But under the change, Australia will become the first country in the world to eliminate all restrictions on plasma donation based on sexual activity.
The new regulations have been approved by the country’s health care products regulator, with an estimated increase of 625,000 donation pools.
Jo Pink, chief medical officer of Lifeline, said in a statement that the changes are a major milestone.
“Blood safety has always been our top priority, but we know that for many in the LGBTQIA+ community, the current donation rules are very difficult… We know that they have contributed to the stigma[they]face.”
Previously, any man or transgender woman who had sex with men in the past three months was prohibited from donating blood or plasma, as well as sex workers and women who had sex with bisexual men.
Most people who have a sexual relationship with a single partner for 6 months or more are now eligible to donate blood regardless of their gender or gender.
Under the new rules, lifeline will no longer ask men about having sex with men in the past three months.
Instead, all donors will be asked if they have anal sex with a new partner or multiple partners.
If the answer is yes, they will have to wait three months to donate blood, but are still eligible to donate plasma.
People taking HIV prevention medication preparations will also be able to donate plasma, although they still cannot donate blood.
The only people who still cannot donate plasma are those with HIV, as well as those with HIV partners.
Plasma donation rules will come into effect on July 14, and an updated blood donation method will be implemented sometime in 2026.
Lifeline and the Kirby Institute at the University of New South Wales show that rule changes will not have any impact on the safety of blood and plasma supply.
Plasma in particular undergoes a process called pathogen inactivation, which filters viruses and bacteria, greatly reducing the risk of infection being transmitted to patients.
Global demand for plasma has been high all the time and is still rising, including in Australia, so Lifeblood hopes these changes will provide much-needed enhancements to supply.
“We welcome this change, which could release thousands of donations to life-saving plasma, which is in high demand in Australian hospitals,” said Dash Heath-Paynter, CEO of Health Equity.
Other reports from Lana Lam
