Since 1983, Canada and many other countries have implemented an indefinite ban on blood donation by men who have sex with men. This was implemented based on information regarding HIV/AIDS at the time. It was known that the disease was transmitted through blood and was more common among homosexual men. For safety reasons, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention has denied the ability to donate blood to any man who has been sexually active with other men since 1977. This would eliminate the risk of receiving infected blood from a gay man because this date preceded the beginning. of the epidemic. It was decided that in Canada, women who had sex with a man who had sex with another man could donate blood one year after sex. Why wouldn't this rule apply to men? I believe that gay men around the world should be allowed to donate blood after a certain period of abstinence or safe sex. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The creation of an indefinite postponement seemed necessary in the early 1980s. The deadly disease had only just been discovered and the FDA was concerned that transmission through blood donation was too common. Although discriminatory, the CDC and FDA supported their ideas by citing two clear advantages of indefinite postponement. These are: 1) no risk of accidental release of contaminated blood into the public and 2) prevention of transfusion of HIV-infected blood units (Wainberg, Shuldiner, Dahl, Gilmore 1323). The FDA believes that if a person completes the donor history questionnaire and is identified as “at increased risk,” they will also be excluded. There is a two-week reprieve if you have recently received a vaccine, a 12-month reprieve from getting a tattoo or piercing, but an indefinite reprieve if you are a sexually active gay man. Countries like Argentina, Australia, Japan, Hungary and Sweden have used their own discretion to reduce their deferrals to one year. A gay man must remain abstinent for a year to be able to donate blood. South Africa allows donations after six months of abstinence and New Zealand allows donations after 10 years. On May 22, 2013, CTV News informed the nation that "Canada is lifting a nearly 30-year-old ban barring gay men from donating blood." The decision was made to allow a gay man to donate blood if he has not had sex with another man in the five years before donating. Spokesman Mark Wainberg agrees it's a "step in the right direction." Vice-president of medical, scientific and research affairs at Canadian Blood Services, Devine, says this will finally allow men who have had experiences at a younger age or who have been sexually assaulted or raped to be able to donate. This type of deferral is much less discriminatory and, therefore, Canadian gay men should consider donating if the standards apply to them. This is the type of deferral that I believe should be offered worldwide, if not less. As noted in the CTV News article, the benefits for men who have not had sex with another man in the past five years are endless. This can apply to men who have been abused, experimented on, or men who choose to remain abstinent. Although it is still banned in the United States, more and more news articles talk about.