Pride & LGBTQIA+ Blood Donor Information
Pride & LGBTQIA+ Blood Donor Information
Inclusivity and Equality: A New Era of Blood Donation
Bloodworks Northwest’s mission supports everyone in our community, saving lives every day. More gay and bisexual men are now able to donate blood under new FDA guidance! Bloodworks implemented the new FDA guidance on December 6, 2023, which established a new blood donor screening process based on individual donor assessments, not sexual orientation. We celebrate this latest FDA move to individual donor assessments and lifting the MSM ban which prioritizes the blood supply while bringing more equality to blood donation and embracing the diversity of our community in the act of saving lives.
Inclusivity and Equality: A New Era of Blood Donation
Bloodworks Northwest’s mission supports everyone in our community, saving lives every day. More gay and bisexual men are now able to donate blood under new FDA guidance! Bloodworks implemented the new FDA guidance on December 6, 2023, which established a new blood donor screening process based on individual donor assessments, not sexual orientation. We celebrate this latest FDA move to individual donor assessments and lifting the MSM ban which prioritizes the blood supply while bringing more equality to blood donation and embracing the diversity of our community in the act of saving lives.
Stories & Advocacy
The FDA’s updated guidelines allow more gay and bisexual men to be part of the blood supply for the first time.
Stories & Advocacy
The FDA’s updated guidelines allow more gay and bisexual men to be part of the blood supply for the first time.
Pride in Our Community
Join us to celebrate PRIDE! We will be attending Pride events
across the region throughout the summer:
Pride Beaverton Parade and Event – Sunday, June 30
Seattle Pride Parade – Sunday, June 30
Vancouver Saturday in the Park – Saturday, July 13
Eugene Pride – Saturday, August 10
Pride in Our Community
Join us to celebrate PRIDE! We will be attending Pride events across the region throughout the summer:
Pride Beaverton Parade and Event
Sunday, June 30
Seattle Pride Parade
Sunday, June 30
Vancouver Saturday in the Park
Saturday, July 13
Eugene Pride
Saturday, August 10
GLAAD Summer of Giving –
Donate with Pride!
GLAAD, the world’s leading LGBTQ media advocacy organization, has teamed up with America’s Blood Centers, of which Bloodworks Northwest is a member, to launch the Summer of Giving, a national blood drive campaign from Tuesday, May 28, 2024 through National Blood Donation Day on Wednesday, September 5, 2024, encouraging businesses to host blood drives and all eligible individuals to donate blood in recognition of recent eligibility changes that promote fairness and inclusivity in the donation process while maintaining the safety of the blood supply. Donate with pride and find a donation appointment near you.
GLAAD Summer of Giving –
Donate with Pride!
GLAAD, the world’s leading LGBTQ media advocacy organization, has teamed up with America’s Blood Centers, of which Bloodworks Northwest is a member, to launch the Summer of Giving, a national blood drive campaign from Tuesday, May 28, 2024 through National Blood Donation Day on Wednesday, September 5, 2024, encouraging businesses to host blood drives and all eligible individuals to donate blood in recognition of recent eligibility changes that promote fairness and inclusivity in the donation process while maintaining the safety of the blood supply. Donate with pride and find a donation appointment near you.
History of FDA’s MSM Policy and Advocating for Change:
Bloodworks Northwest is dedicated to advocating for fair and science-based blood donor eligibility. Take a look back at our years of pushing for change ahead of implementing new, more inclusive guidelines regarding the FDA’s MSM deferral.
1944: Bloodworks is founded to supply blood and plasma to the community.
1983: In response to the HIV epidemic, men who have sex with men (MSM) are given a lifetime ban from donating blood, a fear-based policy set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the agency that regulates blood donation.
2006: Bloodworks, along with associated blood centers, first calls the MSM ban “medically and scientifically unwarranted.”
2011: Bloodworks CEO Dr. Jim AuBuchon speaks out in the LA Times, arguing that advances in science and technology make the FDA’s lifetime ban unnecessary.
2014: Bloodworks hosts the National Gay Blood Drive at Seattle Central College to bring attention to the MSM ban and increase pressure on the FDA to lift it.
2016: Bloodworks is the first blood center in the country known to march in a Pride parade and hosts Pride week at its donor centers.
2017: Bloodworks CEO participates in panel discussion hosted by Gay City LGBTQ Center titled “Bad Blood? A conversation about the FDA Ban on MSM donations,” and encourages community to make their views known to the FDA.
2020: The FDA further shortens MSM deferral to three months. Bloodworks again applauds this decision and again states the change does not go far enough.
2022: Bloodworks modifies our cord blood donation program language to reflect the gender and family diversity of our community.
2023: FDA lifts discriminatory blood donation ban for gay and bisexual men. Bloodworks implements new individual risk-based guidance welcoming donors previously barred from donating.
