France Just Lifted Homophobic Blood Ban on Men Who Have Sex With Men

France has lifted its ban on queer men giving blood, the French government announced Tuesday. The regulation has been in place since the early days of the HIV epidemic.

On Twitter, France's Health Minister Olivier Vera said that references to sexual orientation will be removed from blood donation questionnaires starting in March, putting "an end to an inequality that was no longer justified."

The sanction began in 1983, and was lifted, with a caveat, in July 2016. Potential donors were still required to be sexually abstinent before donating. That period of abstinence was originally set at one year before being lowered to four months in 2019.

Now potential blood donors will have to report if they are undergoing treatments related to HIV prevention. They will also be asked about their recent sexual activity and drug use. However, questions will no longer include asking potential donors about their sexual orientation, the outlet reports.

France follows Italy, Hungary, Brazil, Spain, and several other countries that have all lifted their bans.

The L'Interassociative lesbienne, gaie, bi et trans, one of France's leading LGBTQ organizations, praised the removal of the ban.

"Imposing a four-month period of abstinence on homosexuals wishing to donate blood is totally absurd and has always been seen as a form of discrimination, especially when we know that donations are in short supply," the organization's spokesperson Matthieu Gatipon-Bachette told Le Parisien.

Trending stories

Elon Musk deadnames his 'killed' child — his trans daughter claps back

How climate disasters hurt mental health in young people

Exclusive: Mike Maimone honors late husband Howard Bragman in new single “On My Way”

SFAF's Dr. Tyler TerMeer says he'll continue to fight for health care for all

Gerald Garth is determined to keep people of color happy and healthy through trying times

BREAKING NEWS: Trump admin moves to end federal HIV prevention programs

Discover why chic Costa Navarino is Europe's luxury getaway

'White Lotus' S3 E6 recap: We need to talk about the incest storyline

Pride journey Walla Walla: An LGBTQ+ wine, food, and adventure getaway

Trump's orders prompt CDC to erase HIV resources

Kelly Marie Tran says all of her roles are queer — including her latest in 'Control Freak'

10 lesbian sports movies that are total game-changers

Lana Ja'Rae was the ingenue of 'Drag Race' S17. Why are you mad, sis?

All 6 rogue Mississippi cops got long prison sentences in 'Goon Squad' torture of 2 Black men

Elon Musk uses burner accounts on X, doesn’t fact-check: report

France becomes world’s first country to enshrine abortion rights in constitution

Lexi Love goes public with HIV status after Trump wipes resources from federal website

Vivian Wilson calls father Elon Musk a 'pathetic manchild' in new tell-all interview

11 hypocritical MAGA politicians and supporters accused of sexual harassment and assault

Suzie Toot says the 'RuPaul's Drag Race' cast 'got hate crimed' in Las Vegas

Yellowjackets' Liv Hewson: Breaking Hollywood's binary is 'doable'

Where to stay in LGBTQ+ Ireland: Castles, domes and luxury retreats

From rock legends to Pride flags: Discover the vibrant LGBTQ+ scene in Asbury Park

How RuPaul dragified Las Vegas with a triumphant comeback

Joe Biden has tied the record for most LGBTQ+ judges confirmed in federal courts

• 0
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8

"There must obviously be a health safety framework to respect, but it must not be based on the sexual orientation of the donor," he continued.

"The extreme vigilance of the health authorities allows for a change in the conditions of access to blood donation," said Jerome Salomon, France's Director generale de la sante, one of the Directorate-General of the French Ministry of Health departments. He added that the risk of transmitting HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, by transfusion "has been falling steadily for decades."

Despite this fact, many countries continue to have laws that prohibit donations of blood by gay or bisexual men. In the United States, for example, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration enforces a three-month deferral period for men who have sex with men and women who have sex with queer men.

LGBTQ+ rights activists have called for the policy in the U.S. to be changed for years.

"It does not treat persons with the same risks in a similar way," the Human Rights Campaign has stated. "It also believes that donors are deferred based on their membership in a group -- in this case, all men who have sex with men -- rather than engagement in risky behavior, such as unprotected sex."

The organization added that a man, for example, who has had protected oral sex with another man once in three months is currently barred from donating blood. "Yet a woman who has had unprotected sex with multiple partners over the same time frame with no knowledge of their personal histories remains in the donor pool."