A RESOLUTION
A call for the Congress of the United States of America to drop the FDA ban on LGBT members from
donating blood.
WHEREAS, In 1983, with HIV/AIDS on the rise, the Food and Drug Administration "FDA," under the discretion of President Ronald Reagan's administration, began a policy of a lifetime ban of gay men who have had sex with men, clinically known as "MSM," from donating blood in an effort to reduce the transmission rates of HIV;
WHEREAS, At the time, HIV/AIDS was largely not understood by doctors, scientists, and the general public, and the technology and procedures used to test donated blood for HIV were extremely limited.;
WHEREAS, As science and understanding of HIV/AIDS and transfusion technology advanced, the FDA has revised the lifetime ban of MSM to allow LGBT members to donate blood only after a year of celibacy in December of 2015 - a policy that does not apply to heterosexuals who are deemed equally "at risk;"
WHEREAS, This MSM blood ban restriction is still considered discrimatory to LGBT members under the Equal Protections Clause of the Constitution of the United States of America;
WHEREAS, The American Medical Association (AMA) fully supports the elimination these current public policies as the latest scientific evidence should dictate blood and tissue donation deferral periods to ensure the safety of the national blood supply and supports using scientifically-based deferral periods that are consistently and fairly applied to donors based on their risk level;
WHEREAS, The following recommendations should be adopted by the FDA: 1.) The FDA should update the Donor History Questionnaire so that all potential donors are screened for high-risk behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, and only prospective donors determined to be at high-risk should be subject to deferral periods, 2.) The ban should be replaced with a policy that defers all high-risk (e.g., IV drug users, commercial sex workers) donors regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, while permitting low-risk donors to donate blood and the risk assessment for all donors should also include whether the donor engaged in low-risk sexual practices like condom usage or monogamy.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and Members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, hereby do call on the Congress of the United States of America to have the FDA end the discriminatory ban against LGBT members donating blood to the national blood supply, especially in wake of the Orlando nightclub tragedy;
James Cappleman Alderman, 46th Ward
IT WILL BE FURTHER RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to all members of the Chicago delegation of the United States House of Representatives, as well as United States Senators Richard Durbin and Mark Kirk, for their consideration in the repeal of this matter.