Reevaluating Canada's policy for blood donations from men who have sex with men (MSM)

During the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the 1980s, most of the developed world instituted a permanent ban on blood donations from men who have sex with men (MSM). In recent years, public health agencies across Europe and North America are reconsidering and rescinding these restrictions. We examine the Canad...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of public health policy 2016-12, Vol.37 (4), p.428-439
Main Authors: Jubran, Bellal, Billick, Maxime, Devlin, Gabriel, Cygler, Jeremy, Lebouché, Bertrand
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome
AIDS
Bans
Blood
Blood & organ donations
Blood donation
Blood donors
Blood plasma
Donations
Economic change
Epidemics
Equality and Human Rights
Health care policy
Health policy
HIV
HIV infections
Homosexuality
Human immunodeficiency virus
Mathematical models
Medical screening
Medical Sociology
Men
Men who have sex with men
Mens health
Nonprofit organizations
Policy reform
Politics
Public Health
Reforming
Reforms
Risk analysis
Sexually transmitted diseases
Social Justice
Social Policy
Social Sciences
Sociology
STD
Technology
Transfusion
Viewpoint
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Summary:During the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the 1980s, most of the developed world instituted a permanent ban on blood donations from men who have sex with men (MSM). In recent years, public health agencies across Europe and North America are reconsidering and rescinding these restrictions. We examine the Canadian climate, where MSM may donate blood only after a 5-year deferral period. We review circumstances of the initial ban on MSM blood donations and recent social, legal, and economic changes that have encouraged Canadian public health officials to consider policy reform. We also review international evidence about the impact of reforming MSM blood donations. Given improvements in HIV screening technology, results from mathematical modeling studies, and empirical data from Italy, the UK, and Australia, we conclude that changing Canada's MSM blood donation policy from a 5-to a I-year deferral would not increase the number of transfusion-transmitted HIV infections. We provide empirical support to the recently elected Liberal Canadian government's political promise to decrease restrictions on MSM blood donations.
ISSN:0197-5897
1745-655X
DOI:10.1057/s41271-016-0032-1