Sheryl J. Moore : “FDA Urged to Relax Donation Regs for Gay Men”

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AURORA | In both 2020 and 2023, the federal government updated its guidelines on who could safely donate organs and blood, easing restrictions on men who have engaged in sexual activity with other men.

However, the FDA’s regulations on donated tissue, which includes various body parts like eyes, skin, and ligaments, have remained unchanged. Advocates, legislators, and organizations focused on increasing cornea donations are disappointed that the FDA has not responded to their appeals. They are pushing for the alignment of guidelines for tissue donation by gay and bisexual men with those applicable to the rest of the body.

For years, these groups have been urging the FDA to reduce the deferral period from five years to 90 days. This change would allow men who have had sexual relations with other men to donate tissue as long as such activity did not occur within three months of their demise.

One of the leading voices advocating for a relaxation of the restrictions is Sheryl J. Moore, who has been campaigning since the tragic loss of her 16-year-old son in 2013. Alexander “AJ” Betts Jr.’s internal organs were successfully transplanted to seven individuals, but his corneas were rejected due to a single question regarding his sexual orientation.

Moore and Dr. Michael Puente Jr., a Colorado-based physician, launched a campaign called “Legalize Gay Eyes,” which garnered the attention of national eye groups and policymakers.

Dr. Puente, a pediatric ophthalmologist at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and Children’s Hospital Colorado, deems the current patchwork of donor guidelines illogical given advancements in HIV testing technology.

“A gay man can donate their entire heart for transplant, but they cannot donate just the heart valve,” stated Dr. Puente, who identifies as gay. “It’s essentially a categorical ban.”

The justification for these policies, established three decades ago to prevent HIV transmission, has been undermined by scientific advancements. They are now viewed as unnecessary and discriminatory, focusing on specific populations rather than specific behaviors associated with heightened HIV risk, according to advocates for change.

Since 2022, the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research has included changes to the tissue donation guidelines on its agenda but has yet to take action.

“It is simply unacceptable,” stated Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.) in a released statement. Neguse was among numerous congressional members who signed a letter in 2021 asserting that the current deferral policies perpetuate stigma against gay men and should be based on individualized risk assessments.

“FDA policy should be derived from the best available science, not historic bias and prejudice,” the letter emphasized.

In response to inquiries from KFF Health News, the FDA stated, “while the absolute risk of HIV transmission due to ophthalmic surgical procedures seems remote, there are still relative risks.”

The agency regularly reviews donor screening and testing “to determine what changes, if any, are appropriate based on technological and evolving scientific knowledge,” the statement added. A similar response was provided to Neguse in 2022.

In 2015, the FDA eliminated a policy known as the “blood ban,” which prohibited gay and bisexual men from donating blood, before replacing it in 2023 with a policy treating all potential donors equally. The new policy disallows individuals who have engaged in anal sex with a new partner or multiple partners in the past three months from donating. An FDA study concluded that a questionnaire was sufficient to differentiate between low-risk and high-risk donors.

The U.S. Public Health Service revised organ donation guidelines in 2020. Currently, there are no restrictions preventing sexually active gay men from donating their organs, but the recipient can choose to accept the organ if the donor engaged in sexual activity with another man within the past 30 days, down from a year.

However, Dr. Puente highlighted the fact that gay men like himself cannot donate their corneas unless they were celibate for five years prior to their death.

In one year alone, at least 360 individuals were rejected as cornea donors due to their sexual history, particularly if they were men who had engaged in sexual activity with another man in the past five years, or in the past year for Canadian donors.

Corneas serve as the transparent protective domes for the eyes, resembling a clear jellyfish in appearance. Transplanting a cornea can restore sight to an individual. They contain no blood or bodily fluids capable of transmitting HIV. Despite being sourced from donors whose organs were infected with HIV, there have been no documented cases of HIV transmission through cornea transplants.

All donors, whether for blood, organs, or tissue, undergo testing for HIV and hepatitis. While these tests are not foolproof, advancements in testing technology have significantly reduced the window.

Legalize Gay eye donation regulations
Relax tissue donation regulations for gay individuals.