PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The Thomas Jefferson University Hospital blood donor center, among the first to take advantage of new eligibility rules from the FDA, opened its doors on Monday to people who have been excluded for decades.
“I’m pleased with my veins,” said John Kee, a second-year medical student at Jefferson’s Sidney Kimmel Medical Center. He was first in the door on Monday.
“We were learning all about the importance of blood transfusions, and I know I have O negative blood — universal donor — and I just thought I had something in me to give for that,” Kee said.
Squeezing a foam ball in his hand to make the veins he is so proud of pop up on his forearm so a technician could easily slide in a needle, he said he has wanted to give blood for a long time. Until now, he was not allowed to.
“I grew up with a mother who pretty religiously gave blood. She even donated for our elderly neighbor, so it was something she valued. She liked to give back to the community, and I wanted to follow in her footsteps — but obviously could not as a gay man until the recent rule changes.”
Previous FDA rules, going back to the AIDS crisis of the 1980s, screened out men who have sex with men.
Related
The new rules, announced in May, will allow more gay and bisexual men to donate blood, by requiring all potential donors, regardless of gender or sexual orientation, to answer the same risk-evaluation questions.
The mood at the blood donor center was celebratory with balloons and brand-new giveaway T-shirts reading “Save, Give, Live, Love” in rainbow colors.
“This is a very clear message about including everyone we can include in the blood donation process,” said Dr. Julie Karp, director of Jefferson’s transfusion program.
Karp says research has shown there is no risk to the blood supply by making the donor screening process gender-neutral, and the hospital wanted to be ready to go on Day One.
Related
“This updated policy is based on the best available scientific evidence and is in line with policies in place in countries like the United Kingdom and Canada. It will potentially expand the number of people eligible to donate blood, while also maintaining the appropriate safeguards to protect the safety of the blood supply,” read a May 11 statement from the FDA, announcing the final draft of its new eligibility requirements.
For Kee, it is another step forward — for those who need blood and for the gay community.
“We have a lot of work to go, but I am excited by the changes we have already seen.”