The group FreedomToDonate, who successfully led the campaign to update the Government’s rules on gay and bi men donating blood in 2017, are now calling for people who still aren’t allowed to donate to make their voices heard.
FreedomToDonate is asking people who could donate but are prevented from doing so to #PledgeAPint to show how many pints are being missed each year: https://www.freedomtodonate.co.uk/pledge-to-donate/
Ethan Spibey, founder of FreedomToDonate, said, “the progress we’ve made in the UK is amazing and while the UK now has a world-leading policy. However, our end goal has always been to have a truly individualised risk-based policy introduced. This means that every person who wants to donate blood is assessed individually rather than subject to blanket restrictions.
We’re asking anyone who otherwise would be able to give blood but can’t because of the remaining restrictions to shout about it. We want to understand just how many people are being excluding from making the life-saving gift of donating blood.”
Until recently, men could not donate blood if they had had sex with another man in the last 12 months, regardless of type or frequency of sexual activity.
FreedomToDonate spearheaded a campaign which resulted in the 12 months being reduced to three months alongside LGBT charities including the Terrence Higgins Trust, Stonewall and the National AIDS Trust.