Local blood bank implements changes to expand eligible donors

Humboldt County’s local blood bank implemented changes and is ready to expand accepting donations from gay men.

In May, the Food and Drug Administration announced changes to blood donation rules that allow more gay and bisexual men and transgender women to donate blood. The local blood bank will now ask the same set of questions to donors, regardless of the individual’s sexual orientation or gender.

Kate Witthaus, CEO of Northern California Community Blood Bank, said this change makes the process more inclusive and safer.

“By not asking everyone safety questions, we were missing people who we should have screened,” she said.

Those who report having at least one new sexual partner and having anal sex in the past three months will be temporarily deferred from donating blood. People taking PrEP, a medication that prevents HIV infection, will also be deferred as long as they are taking the drug, the FDA said when the changes were announced. The change allowed sexually active, monogamous gay men to donate blood in America for the first time since 1985.

Prior to the May FDA change, the FDA barred sexually active gay and bisexual men from donating blood. The rules stem from the early years of the AIDS epidemic when gay and bisexual men were barred from donating blood entirely after people in the 1980s were infected with the virus in blood transfusions. In 2015, rules changed that allowed these people to donate if they underwent an abstinence period to donate blood. LGBTQ+ rights advocates have long criticized these requirements as considering identity over risk factors as blood testing has gotten more accurate.

Safety of the blood supply includes tests of the blood as well as a questionnaire that aims to screen out those who may be infected with a transmittable disease.

“Every single blood donation is tested every single time for infection,” Witthaus said. The blood bank has updated its computer systems and operating procedures and educated staff over the past few months following the FDA change, rolling the new system out Oct. 2.

When asked, Witthaus said she’s not expecting a flood of new donors because some impacted have never been eligible to donate. “I think we need to build trust, as well, because a lot of people felt excluded for a long time,” she added.

Recently, the blood bank also changed requirements to allow people who have visited or lived in Europe to donate blood. Those who lived there previously had an FDA permanent deferral. This particularly impacted military families.

In the past few days, the bank noted critically low levels of most blood types, said Witthaus. The bank is in especially in need of O+ and O- blood, and also could use A+ and A-. She said the bank had a strong summer of donations but that slowed in recent weeks.

The blood bank serves Del Norte and Humboldt County and the bloodmobile frequently travels to locations across the area to make donation easier. The blood bank in Eureka is open Monday through Friday. Interested donors can call 707-443-8004.

Sage Alexander can be reached at 707-441-0504.