In 1985, Health Canada introduced a new policy on donor deferral, banning men who have sex with men from donating blood for life. Given the situation, lack of knowledge about HIV/AIDS, and lack of technology for detecting the virus in a timely fashion, the policy was generally accepted by all, including gay men.

Today, however, the scene is much different. In Canada, there is significant scientific knowledge about HIV/AIDS, enormous public education about prevention, and new technology that can detect HIV within twelve days after infection.

The Canadian Blood Services and Héma-Québec systems rely on screening at different levels in order to minimize the possibility of disease transmission through blood products. It encourages certain individuals, such as men who have had sex with men (MSM), to self-select and not even show up to donate; it administers an elaborate questionnaire and on paper rejects those who may be at risk of carrying blood borne pathogens; and finally, it submits every unit of blood that is drawn to an elaborate series of chemical tests for HIV, hepatitis B and C, syphilis, and other infections. This process takes about three days to perform.

Blood found carrying any of these pathogens is removed from the system and destroyed. Donors are notified that their blood tested positive for specific infections, counseled about the findings, and are encouraged to see their physician.

While none of these efforts are failsafe, the redundancy of overlapping systems has proven remarkably effective. So much so that the American Red Cross states in one of its “Frequently Asked Questions” prepared for consumers: “The risk of not getting a blood transfusion when it’s needed is infinitely greater than the risk of infection from receiving one.”

Due to the small number of blood donors, most of the blood that is donated in Canada comes from a loyal 3 percent of the population that donates repeatedly throughout the year. But that group of repeat donors has been slowly shrinking, while the development of new medical procedures has increased the need for blood. The need is slowly outpacing supply so that seasonal shortages and emergency appeals are becoming annual rituals in most major cities.

In October 2008, Canadian Blood Services was forced to ration its blood shipments to hospitals as donations dropped by 40 percent over the previous two months. It would be in the best interests of the patients who require blood for the policies of Health Canada to allow more Canadians the ability to donate their blood, rather than continue to impose restrictions that limit contribution to the Canadian blood supply.

The MSM ban differs from every other blood policy exclusion in two significant ways:

1. It is based on a person’s status rather than behaviours that put them at risk for infection; and

2. It reflects a double standard in that same at-risk behaviours performed by heterosexuals bring only a temporary restriction that is generally limited to twelve months.

Canadian Blood Services has gone to extreme lengths to enforce the policies banning the MSM community from donating blood. On September 28, 2009, a trial between CBS and a former York University student, Kyle Freeman, began in the Superior Court of Ontario. Freeman donated blood and did not disclose that he had had sex with another man. CBS is suing Freeman for misrepresenting his sexual history and intentionally violating their policy. Freeman is counter suing CBS for discrimination.

In light of the Freeman case, it has become clear that CBS has not pursued an effective strategy to earn the trust and cooperation of the Queer community that is so fundamental to a safe blood supply but rather is pursuing the implementation of an unreasonably aggressive approach against gay blood donors.