FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, July 11, 2014
CONTACT: Ian Koski at 202-224-5042 

Senator Coons applauds Delaware participants in National Gay Blood Drive

Outdated and discriminatory rule prevents gay and bisexual men from donating blood

WILMINGTON, Del. – U.S. Senator Chris Coons, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a passionate supporter of LGBT equality, praised the dozens of Delawareans who participated in the National Gay Blood Drive in Wilmington and Dover on Friday. Because the U.S. Food & Drug Administration has banned gay and bisexual men from donating blood since 1983, the National Gay Blood Drive was organized to give them a chance to bring qualifying heterosexual individuals to make a blood donation instead. Last year, the American Medical Association voted in support of ending the ban.

“The ban on blood donations from gay and bisexual men is a relic of an era when testing for HIV wasn’t reliable or practical,” Senator Coons said. “It was built on a fear that, decades later, simply reinforces an unfair and unjust stigma against gay and bisexual men. Our laws need to catch up to our science. Rather than broadly discriminating against men based on whom they love, the FDA should instead be requiring screenings on an individual basis. Today’s blood drive made an important point that I hope is heard not only by the FDA, but by folks more broadly. Discriminatory laws and rules based on outdated fears should have no place in this country. I will continue to urge the FDA to lift this needless, discriminatory ban.”

Wilmington and Dover were among more than 60 cities participating in Friday’s second-annual National Gay Blood Drive. 

In December, Senator Coons introduced legislation aimed at helping end the stigma, discrimination, and stereotypes that negatively impact Americans living with HIV/AIDS. The Repeal Existing Policies that Encourage and Allow Legal (“REPEAL”) HIV Discrimination Act would require an interagency review of federal and state laws that criminalize certain actions by people living with HIV. More on that is available here: http://1.usa.gov/1nlCY3h

Senator Coons was one of 18 senators to write to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, who oversees the Food & Drug Administration, last August urging that the ban be dropped. That letter is available here: http://1.usa.gov/1qrLw7N