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Until now, gay and bisexual men cannot donate blood until twelve months after their last same-sex sex. Health Minister Rudolf Anschober would like to shorten this period to four months – and that could happen much earlier than expected, as the Neos have now found out with a parliamentary question to the minister.
In a first step, the waiting time is to be shortened to four months
In February, Anschober announced the shortening of the waiting time. He was sharply criticized by the community because the existing discrimination against gay and bisexual men is shortened, but not ended. The main brake on non-discriminatory blood donation is the Red Cross, which processes most of the blood donations in Austria.
In the announcement, Anschober did not mention an exact date from when blood donation for gay and bisexual men should be at least a little fairer. Quite understandable, because the first announced dates – for example the end of 2020 – could not be met by the Ministry of Health.
Anschober announced to the Neos that it will be implemented by the end of March
Now the health minister has given a new date in his answer to a parliamentary question from the Neos – and it is a surprise. When LGBTIQ + spokesman Yannick Shetty asked when the new measures would become binding, Anschober replied on March 16: “Implementation is currently planned for the end of the first quarter of 2021”. The first quarter ends on March 31st – so Anschober would have a good week to introduce the new blood donation rules.
For Shetty this seems unlikely: “Not only in vaccination, but also in other areas there is absolute chaos in the Anschober ministry: While in February it was still said that the blood donation ban will only fall in autumn, Anschober has announced that it will be implemented by the end of March 2021 at. I believe that the blood donation ban will only be lifted when the blood donation ordinance or the questionnaire are changed, ”said the MP.
The ultimate goal remains non-discriminatory blood donation
However, shortening the retention period would only be a first step – the community continues to demand a non-discriminatory blood donation in Austria. The Netherlands showed what this could look like a few days ago: Probably from September 1, monogamous gay couples will be able to donate their blood without any other restrictions.
In addition, gay and bisexual men who have sex with several people in the Netherlands should in future also be able to donate blood if they have safe sex – for example with a condom. In further discussions, the Dutch LGBTI organization COC even wants all blood donors to be asked about safe sex and monogamous relationships.
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