Allowing gay men to donate blood would help solve Australia’s blood supply crisis according to LGBTIQA+ advocacy group, Just.Equal. The Red Cross Lifeblood Service has issued a call for donors as blood supplies drop due to cancelled donations resulting from an upsurge of colds, flu and Covid. Just.Equal Australia spokesperson, Rodney Croome, said, “Just.Equal wants […]
Equality advocates are disappointed the Australian Red Cross Lifeblood Service continues to ban gay & bi men and some trans folks from blood donation despite Lifeblood’s support for ending the ban on people who lived in the UK in the 1980s and 90s. A blood donor shortage due to the current Covid wave has prompted […]
From January 31st gay men will be able to donate blood after a three month celibacy period rather than twelve, but advocates say the celibacy period should be abolished altogether and replaced with screening for individual risk. The Red Cross Blood Service, Lifeblood, has now confirmed on its LGBTIQ donor webpage that from January 31st […]
LGBTIQ+ rights advocates have accused Australia’s blood donation service, Lifeblood (formerly the Red Cross Blood Service) of a double standard after it lifted the ban on blood plasma donors with tattoos while maintaining its ban on gay, bisexual and trans (GBT) donors. This week, Lifeblood announced the four month period between obtaining a tattoo and […]
The President of Turkey has leapt to the defence of the head of the nation’s Red Crescent (Red Cross) organisation, doubling down on homophobic comments in a public speech. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has shown his support for Turkish Red Crescent leader Kerem Kinik, who launched a public tirade against LGBTIQ+ communities and Pride Month on […]
Western Australian Health Minister Roger Cook has confirmed to OUTinPerth that he has asked the WA Health Department to review the waiting times for gay and bisexual men to donate blood. “The McGowan Government pursues excellence in care across all treatment disciplines, and for all members of the community. I have asked the Department of […]
Australian LGBTIQ+ advocates will today write to the federal government and the Red Cross Blood Service, calling for the removal of a long-standing ban that prevents men who have sex with men from donating blood. The call comes as the US Food and Drug Administration lifted some restrictions on gay blood donation, reducing the period […]
just.equal has urged LGBTIQ Australians and their families and allies to contribute to any of the many verified bushfire relief funds that have been established to support the Australian community in this unprecedented crisis. The advocacy group is promoting bushfire relief funds to its large social media following and database, beginning with this post. Co-founder, […]
A spokesperson for the Red Cross Blood Donation Service has updated OUTinPerth on the progress of a review into the current rules surrounding blood donation. Currently men who have had sex with another man within the last twelve months are banned from donating blood. To volunteer as a blood donor gay, bisexual and other men […]
Australia’s health ministers have agreed to bring forward a review of the rules that prevent men who have had sex with other men (MSM) from donating blood. Currently MSM are banned from donating blood. To be eligible gay men must abstain from sex for 12 months. The longstanding rules were developed when there was concern […]
