Canada tightens rules governing organ donations

[Adept]

By David Ljunggren

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada has imposed sweeping restrictions on who can donate organs for transplant -- including a ban on gay men who have been sexually active in the past five years -- and a leading doctor said on Tuesday he feared the move could deter potential donors.

The restrictions, which also cover drug addicts, prisoners, prostitutes and people who have had tattoos or body piercings in the last 12 months using shared needles, came into effect last month.

"The safety of the cells, tissues and organs intended for transplantation is paramount. These regulations are based on risk for safety purposes and not lifestyle choices," said a Health Canada spokeswoman.

The rules include a loophole that allows doctors to use healthy organs from a person in a high-risk group as long as they first inform the patient receiving the transplant.

The head of Canada's largest organ transplant program -- operated by the University Health Network in Toronto -- said doctors had already been following many of the same rules, which are similar to regulations that govern blood donations.

But Dr Gary Levy said he feared some people might wrongly decide they were in a high-risk group and decide not to make their organs available for donation.

"I'm worried about (whether) this will have a negative impact on organ donation ... I was on a radio show today and someone called in and said 'I can't donate'," he said.

"I said 'That's not true ... leave it to the professionals to determine whether these organs can be used safely and if they're good'," he told Reuters, saying the regulations should have focused more on risky behavior.

"If you have a same gender partner and you've had that same gender partner for 30 years, you're not a high-risk group. But if you're a heterosexual and you went out and had sex with 14 people last night, you're a high-risk person," he said.

Helen Kennedy, executive director of the gay rights group Egale Canada, described the regulations as outrageous and crazy.

"It's perpetuating stereotypes. It bans every gay or bisexual man who potentially is in a monogamous relationship -- or other gay men who are vigilant about safe sex practices -- from donating organs," she told Reuters.

"The question should be based on behavior: Have you had unprotected sex with anyone ... or, have you had unprotected anal sex?"

Health Canada insisted gay men were not being singled out.

"A gay man who had practiced abstinence for the five years prior (to making an organ donation) would be acceptable," said the spokeswoman.

"Likewise a heterosexual man who had had a single sexual encounter with a male within the last five years would not be considered acceptable even though he is not gay."

(Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by Rob Wilson)

The link is here.

As you can probably tell, the main contention is about the ban on actively gay males from donating. Seems a bit silly, especially since they appear to be lumped into the same risk category as prostitutes and drug addicts. The rather telling part is that I heard the Conservative party passed this rather quietly and quickly.

[Darth Wong]

Fucking conservatives.

[Elaro]

Don't we have a similar restriction concerning blood donation?

Not that I'm defending these close-minded bigots, but if so, at least you can say they're coherent.

[Admiral Valdemar]

I'm with Mike.

I notice Canada has become a lot less like the haven I used to think it was since the election.

[Elaro]

I'm with Mike.

I notice Canada has become a lot less like the haven I used to think it was since the election.

Oh yeah. Say what you want about the Liberals, but at least they're not Bush-lite.

[Darth Wong]

I'm with Mike.

I notice Canada has become a lot less like the haven I used to think it was since the election.

Well, there's a conservative party in power now, and they're doing what conservatives tend to do: cozying up to big business, fucking over the environment, pushing socially regressive policies, and tying the whole thing together with nationalism and fear.

Canada is no utopia by any means; we just look good when compared to the country south of us where even the liberal politicians don't dare support gay marriage or socialized health care.

[Alyrium Denryle]

I see the canadians are taking a play from the US playbook. Scapegoating gay people. Good job canada. Here is an idea, how about you just TEST THE FUCKING ORGANS! There are more straight people with STDs and other lovely little infections than there are gay people in the entire FUCKING POPULATION. What is it... 1 in 6 to 1 in 4 people has a sexually transmitted infection.

Fuck you Conservative Canadian government. Fuck you for scapegoating gay people, and killing people on transplant lists in the process.

[aerius]

Goddamn cocksucking Conservative assholes.
Also, which fucking party rolled over and let the Conservative fucknuts get away with this shit?

[Adept]

Also, which fucking party rolled over and let the Conservative fucknuts get away with this shit?

I haven't been paying a whole lot of attention, but the liberals appear to be just bickering amongst themselves at the moment. Stephane Dion is definitely not appearing to be a "uniter" by any means, though you'd think that any fair minded individual (regardless of who their leader is) would want to put this measure under scrutiny.

Also, I alluded to it before, but I'm particularly dismayed at the lack of coverage this is getting. I only initially heard about it through my campus publication, which is not a wide-reaching document, by any means. And take a look at the conservatives' website. The measure isn't even MENTIONED there in any of their news or press releases.

[Boyish-Tigerlilly]

Don't we have a similar restriction concerning blood donation?

Yes, at least in New Jersey. I was going to donate blood at my university, but when I stupidly was honest and wrote down "gay" they basically jettisoned me out of the trailer.

[SCRawl]

Don't we have a similar restriction concerning blood donation?

Yes, at least in New Jersey. I was going to donate blood at my university, but when I stupidly was honest and wrote down "gay" they basically jettisoned me out of the trailer.

There was the whole tainted blood scandal a few years back, which led the agency responsible for blood collections to clamp down. Among other things, sexually active gay men have been told to go bleed somewhere else. Donors also can't have spent very much time abroad, especially Africa.

With organs, though, the numbers are just so much smaller than for blood products -- the testing can be much more thorough. I agree with DW -- Fucking Conservatives.

[FSTargetDrone]

There was the whole tainted blood scandal a few years back, which led the agency responsible for blood collections to clamp down. Among other things, sexually active gay men have been told to go bleed somewhere else. Donors also can't have spent very much time abroad, especially Africa.

Visiting Mexico for three weeks in my high school years apparently killed my eligibility to be a blood donor, when I attempted to do so a year after returning.

[SCRawl]

I've posted this before, but I suppose it bears repeating.

1. a) Are you feeling well today?
b) Do you have a cold, flu, sore throat, fever, infection or allergy problem today?
2. a) In the last 3 days have you taken any medicine or drugs (pills including Aspirin or shots), other than birth control pills
and vitamins?
b) In the last 3 days have you had dental work?
3. a) In the last 3 months have you had a vaccination?
b) In the last 3 months have you taken Accutane, Clarus or Isotretinoin for skin problems?
4. a) In the last 6 months have you been under a doctor’s care or had surgery?
b) If female, in the last 6 months have you been pregnant?
c) In the last 6 months have you taken Proscar, Avodart (Dutasteride), Propecia, Methotrexate or Cyclomen (Danazol)?
d) In the last 6 months have you had a tattoo, ear or skin piercing, acupuncture or electrolysis?
e) In the last 6 months have you had an injury from a needle or come in contact with someone else’s blood?
5. a) In the last 12 months have you had a rabies shot or a graft?
b) In the last 12 months have you had close contact with a person who has had hepatitis or yellow jaundice?
c) In the last 12 months have you been in jail or prison?
6. In the last 3 years have you been outside Canada, other than the U.S.?
7. a) Since 1980, did you receive a blood transfusion or blood product in the United Kingdom, France or elsewhere in Europe?
b) Have you spent a total of 3 months or more in the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, the Isle
of Man, or the Channel Islands) from January 1, 1980 through December 31, 1996?
c) Have you spent a total of 3 months or more in France from January 1, 1980 through December 31, 1996?
d) Have you spent a total of 5 years or more in Europe since January 1,1980?
8. Have you ever had malaria?
9. a) Have you ever taken Tegison or Soriatane for skin problems?
b) Have you ever taken human pituitary growth hormone or human pituitary gonadotrophin hormone?
c) Have you ever received a dura mater (brain covering) graft?
10. Have you ever had:
a) yellow jaundice (other than at birth) or hepatitis?
b) epilepsy, coma, stroke or fainting?
c) cancer, diabetes or Crohn’s disease?
d) heart, kidney, lung or blood problems?
e) Chagas’ disease, babesiosis or leishmaniasis?
11.Have you ever had an AIDS (HIV) test other than for donating blood?
12.Are you aware of a diagnosis of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease among any of your blood relatives (parent, child, sibling)?
13.Have you, in your past or present job, taken care of or handled monkeys or their body fluids?

14.a) Do you have AIDS?
b) Have you ever had a positive test for HIV or AIDS?
15. Have you used cocaine within the last 12 months?
16. Have you ever taken illegal drugs or illegal steroids with a needle even one time?
17. At any time since 1977, have you taken money or drugs for sex?
18. Male donors: Have you had sex with a man, even one time since 1977?
19. Have you ever taken clotting factor concentrates for a bleeding disorder such as hemophilia?
20. Have you had sex with anyone who has AIDS or has tested positive for HIV or AIDS?
21. Female donors: In the last 12 months, have you had sex with a man who had sex, even one time since 1977 with another man?
22. Have you had sex in the last 12 months with anyone who has ever taken illegal drugs or illegal steroids with a needle?
23. At any time in the last 12 months, have you paid money or drugs for sex?
24. At any time in the last 12 months, have you had sex with anyone who has taken money or drugs for sex?
25. Have you had sex in the last 6 months with anyone who has taken clotting factor concentrates?
26. In the last 12 months, have you had or been treated for syphilis or gonorrhea?
27. In the last 12 months, have you received blood or blood products by transfusion for any reason, such as an accident or surgery?
28. In the past 6 months, have you had sex with someone whose sexual background you don’t know?
29.a) Were you born in or have you lived in Africa since 1977?
b) Since 1977, did you receive a blood transfusion or blood product in Africa?
c) Have you had sexual contact with anyone who was born in or lived in Africa since 1977?

That's pretty hard to read in that form, so if you're really keen to do so, here's the pdf file.

It looks like you popped question 6, FSTargetDrone. It's only a three-year moratorium, though, so if you really want to give again, the passage of time will make you acceptable to them. As you can see, they're pretty strict about blood donations.

[Shroom Man 777]

How did you people end up electing conservatives, anyway?

[Nieztchean Uber-Amoeba]

How did you people end up electing conservatives, anyway?

The Liberlas had been in power forever, got complacent, a little corrupt. So out they go for the coalition of the Conservatives and the Far Left. And the Conservatives will probably win again, too.

[SCRawl]

How did you people end up electing conservatives, anyway?

I think that "conservative" is a relative term; I wouldn't say that Canada's Conservative Party is quite as conservative as the GOP.

[Alyrium Denryle]

How did you people end up electing conservatives, anyway?

I think that "conservative" is a relative term; I wouldn't say that Canada's Conservative Party is quite as conservative as the GOP.

Your conservatives are about as conservative as US liberals....

[FSTargetDrone]

It looks like you popped question 6, FSTargetDrone. It's only a three-year moratorium, though, so if you really want to give again, the passage of time will make you acceptable to them. As you can see, they're pretty strict about blood donations.

Yes, sorry, I didn't elaborate. I should have added that my initial attempt at blood donation was prevented by the visit to Mexico, but I have given blood several times in the years since.