ORLANDO, Fla. – The FDA last month announced a major change that will pave the way for more gay and bisexual men to donate blood.
The updated guidelines do away with the requirement that men who have sex with men abstain from sex for three months prior to donating.
It was a rule that prevented many in the LGBTQ+ community from giving blood nearly seven years ago following the Pulse nightclub shooting.
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Susan Forbes, the senior vice president of corporate communications and public relations at OneBlood, joined anchor Justin Warmoth on “The Weekly” to break down how the new guidance will usher in a new era of donor eligibility.
“It’s an era where a person’s sexual orientation will not determine if they can or cannot donate blood,” Forbes said. “It really is a change that’s been decades in the making.”
Watch the full interview in the video player above.
For more information on the new policy, click here.
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