Gay men will be allowed to donate blood from July next year on. Minister of Health Willum Þór Þórsson said that he welcomed this change, which has taken a long time to implement, Vísir reports.
Trailing Europe
Iceland is one of four European countries that still hasn’t permitted gay men to donate blood, along with Türkiye, Kosovo and Croatia. They’ve been designated a risk group, more likely than others to be infected with the HIV virus.
Most European countries have changed their tune in recent years, allowing gay men to donate blood or added a clause that bars men from donating blood if they’ve had sex with another man within a certain time period.
New screenings
From 1 July, Icelandic authorities will begin NAT blood screenings of all donors, which shows whether they hepatitis B or C or the HIV virus. “Our reform means that we’ll have an adjustment period for use of the current stock of blood and start NAT screenings after that,” Willum said.
The Icelandic Blood Bank has faced persistent shortages over the last few years, but this change will increase the pool of possible donors. “It’s a big undertaking, adopting this new screening,” Willum said. “We’ve been working with the National University Hospital and the Blood Bank. We’re in the home stretch and can start this process. Finally.”
