Red Cross Statement on Updated FDA Donor Eligibility Criteria due to Pandemic

April 2, 2020 — The American Red Cross issued the following statement regarding updated FDA guidance to address the urgent need for blood during the pandemic:

“The American Red Cross is pleased that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has updated its eligibility guidance regarding men who have sex with men, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) or “mad cow” and malaria. These changes will potentially allow more individuals to donate and help ensure blood collection organizations across the country continue to meet patient needs throughout this pandemic and beyond.

Consistent with our Red Cross position, this is the first and important step toward a greater goal of an equitable blood donation process that treats all potential donors with equality and respect, and ensures a safe, sufficient blood supply is readily available for patients in need. The Red Cross remains committed to building an inclusive environment that embraces diversity for all those who engage with our lifesaving mission and does not believe blood donation eligibility should be determined by methods that are based upon sexual orientation.

The Red Cross will work aggressively to implement the many eligibility changes outlined by the FDA as soon as possible. This process includes potentially thousands of individuals and involves complex system updates that will take time to implement. Based off this breaking news, we are working to develop a reinstatement process to share with potential donors in the near future. We appreciate your support during this transition.

Our broader Red Cross statement on the FDA policy concerning deferral criteria for men who have had sex with men (MSM) is available on our website.”