In the future, anyone in Austria will be able to donate blood – regardless of their sexual orientation or gender. This has been decided in an amendment to the blood donation regulation.
Health Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) and State Secretary for Youth Claudia Plakolm (ÖVP) announced the new arrangement on Friday morning. This redefines the risk groups for a blood donation while guaranteeing the highest safety standards for blood supply.
“Sexual orientation should not play a role in donating blood, I say that with deep conviction. If someone wants to help by donating blood, that person should not be prevented from doing so because of their sexual orientation or gender,” said the minister of Public health.
Duration of exclusion is reduced to three months
Anyone who has had sex with three or more different partners in the past three months is not allowed to donate blood for three months, regardless of whether they are male, female, straight, gay or trans – the so-called three times three rule. The regulation provides for this in the future.
Previous regulations led to general discrimination
Previously, people who had exposed themselves to a risk of infection with sexually transmitted diseases were excluded for a period of 12 months after the risk exposure. In practice, this led to a general exclusion of gay and bisexual men, their partners and transgender people.
“I think it is very good that in the future individual risk behavior will count and that entire population groups are no longer discriminated against across the board,” says Plakolm, happy with the agreement. According to Rauch, the scheme will apply from the autumn and will be evaluated by experts after two years.
First reactions
One can only hope that the regulation contains an explicit prohibition of discrimination, emphasizes Andrea Brunner, director of the Vienna AIDS Federation. NEOS LGBTIQ spokesperson Yannick Shetty was pleased “that the federal government has finally come to its senses”.
Linder thanks activists
“We owe this move to countless activists who have worked for years and built up pressure,” said SPÖ spokesperson for equality, Mario Lindner.
Source: Krone
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