'We have taken great care to ensure this policy revision is backed by sound science and continues to protect our blood supply.' 'The FDA's responsibility is to maintain a high level of blood product safety for people whose lives depend on it,' FDA acting commissioner Stephen Ostroff said in a statement. But the change puts the policy for gay and bisexual men in line with other potential donors at increased risk for HIV, such as recent transfusion recipients, FDA officials said. While the new policy lifts a ban in place for more than 30 years, since the early days of the HIV and AIDS epidemic, it effectively stops sexually active gay men from donating. Gay and bisexual men in the United States are no longer barred from donating blood, under a policy change announced Monday by the Food and Drug Administration, but there's a big catch: Men still cannot donate if they have had sex with other men in the previous 12 months.
