Should gay men be allowed to donate blood?

“Yes. The ban is too arbitrary. I have lots of completely responsible gay-male friends. I’d rather get their blood than some of my straight friends’. The policy is antigay and doesn’t make sense. There’s no statistical proof that it’s helpful.”

Yes, absolutely. The policy is stupid. It’s horrible how gay men are demonized as disease carriers. Straight men have anal sex, too. They’re just as likely to have AIDS. Why don’t we ban their blood from the system?”

“No. Precautions are necessary considering the potential for harm. If you can avoid a risk, why not? But I hope other ways can be found to involve gay me in the [blood-collection] effort, so they don’t feel left out. They should feel connected and part of the process.”

“Maybe as an intermediate step, we could label the gay blood and give people the option [of receiving it]. That’s better than an outright ban. But my definite preference would be to accept everyone’s blood. Screen it in the lab. Don’t rely on screening by [using] a questionnaire.”