The current blood screening system in Canada relies on screening at different levels in order to minimize the possibility of disease transmission through blood products. It encourages certain individuals, such as 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 bourn pathogens; 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. That process takes about three days to perform.

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

No one challenges the fact that people who know that they are HIV-positive should refrain from donating blood. And most people, including MSM, believed that the draconian policy of differing MSM individuals, made sense in light of the devastating nature of HIV infection in the 80’s; the then limited epidemiological data and knowledge of how HIV is transmitted; and the relatively crude tools available to detect the virus in blood. However, conditions have changed substantially since 1985, but the policy has not.

The MSM ban differs from every other blood policy exclusion in two significant ways. First, it is based on a person’s status rather than acts that put them at risk for infection. Second, it reflects a double standard where the same risky acts performed by heterosexuals brings a temporal restriction that generally is limited to 6 months, while a MSM is banned for life.

As a result monogamous homosexual couples in stable long-term relationships, who have little risk of recent HIV infection, are barred from donating blood.

Justification for the policy is becoming increasingly difficult as blood screening technology improved and the chance of a tainted unit slipping through declined. Most experts in the field understand that there have been major changesin screening technology since 1985 and have been willing to modify the de facto lifetime ban on gay men donating blood.

The position of the Canadian Federation of Students (Federation) is that the MSM policy is outdated and should be removed from the CBS policy and that CBS should lobby Health Canada to revoke its regulation on MSM.

The end the ban campaign advocates the following changes to the current deferral criteria:

1. The deferral policy should strive for clarity and simplicity.

2. The CBS must adhere to its responsibility in the broader public to pass along accurate messaging, in the interest of public health and not propaganda.

3. The blood supply must be kept safe and the way to do that is through explicit donor screening that is based on behaviours, not demographics.

4. The Government and its blood collection agents’ principle of striving for non-discrimination should be adhered to when drafting and enforcing all policy of the organizations.

Excluding potential donors from giving blood solely based on their membership in a specific demographic group is unacceptable. It is not the membership in a demographic group that is the risk but rather, engaging in a specific behaviour.