National Blood Service to Review Blood Donor Bans

The National Blood Service has announced plans to conduct a review of policies governing exclusion and deferral from blood donation.
 
Deborah Jack, Chief Executive of NAT comments: 
 
"NAT were the first to call for a comprehensive review of the lifelong bans and we are pleased that the National Blood Service has acted swiftly to meet our concerns.
 
NAT is not convinced by the justification put forward for the current lifetime ban for men who have ever had sex with another man and anyone who has ever injected drugs or ever received payment in money or drugs for sex; particularly in the light of improved testing technologies. We welcome the National Blood Service’s decision to review these restrictions.”
 
Read further details of NAT’s campaign for a review and our correspondence with to the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs (SaBTO)here.

Notes to the editor:

The National Blood Service press release announcing the review can be found at:
http://www.blood.co.uk/Press/Default.aspx
 
For further information please contact:
Katherine Sladden
Communications Officer
NAT
020 7814 6733 / 07947 725299
press@nat.org.uk
 
NAT
NAT (National AIDS Trust) is the UK’s leading charity dedicated to transforming society’s response to HIV. We provide fresh thinking, expert advice and practical resources. We campaign for change.
 
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www.nat.org.uk