No British blood allowed in the US
Feb 13th 2011, 2:09 pm
#16
Badger Badger Badger
Joined: Jun 2010
Location: Montpelier, Vermont
Posts: 491
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
You can't donate if you're a guy and have had "sexual contact with a man" or if you're a woman who's had "sexual contact with a man who's had sexual contact with another man" either. I gather this is from the huge HIV scare in the 80s but it seems crazy now. I have a number of gay friends who are rightfully outraged.
Feb 13th 2011, 2:18 pm
#17
Professional Cat herder
Joined: Apr 2007
Location: TORONTO- yay!!!
Posts: 5,707
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
You can't donate if you're a guy and have had "sexual contact with a man" or if you're a woman who's had "sexual contact with a man who's had sexual contact with another man" either. I gather this is from the huge HIV scare in the 80s but it seems crazy now. I have a number of gay friends who are rightfully outraged.
Feb 13th 2011, 2:22 pm
#18
Forum Regular
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 140
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
Don't worry, there is a reciprocal deal in place..... You can't give blood in the UK if you've visited the USA.......
Although it is only in place if you visited the States between the 1st April and the end of November (not 100% on the dates...) and is to do with the Nile virus...
Carl.
Although it is only in place if you visited the States between the 1st April and the end of November (not 100% on the dates...) and is to do with the Nile virus...
Carl.
Feb 13th 2011, 3:26 pm
#19
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Mar 2010
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 8,106
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
You can donate bone marrow. I'm on the bone marrow registry. I think at that point when it becomes a one to one donation from a known living donor it is then up to the recipient to accept the risk and they can do extra tests. I guess that would apply to living kidney donations too.
Feb 13th 2011, 4:40 pm
#20
Boomshacalaca!!
Joined: Dec 2005
Location: South of the North Pole.......Colorado
Posts: 5,066
Feb 13th 2011, 5:02 pm
#21
BE Commentator
Joined: Feb 2010
Location: Los Angeles, California
Posts: 8,427
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is the culprit. It seems that the UK has restrictions in place also.
Feb 13th 2011, 5:13 pm
#22
Arrogant ****
Joined: Jan 2004
Location: Plano, TX
Posts: 4,323
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is the culprit. It seems that the UK has restrictions in place also.
Feb 13th 2011, 7:18 pm
#24
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Apr 2007
Location: Charleston, SC
Posts: 1,455
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
Apparently there is a blood test they are working on to see who is a carrier of vCJD.
It really irritates me that I can't give blood here. I gave blood regularly in the UK. I am on the bone marrow register here and on my drivers licence it says I want to be an organ donor.
It really irritates me that I can't give blood here. I gave blood regularly in the UK. I am on the bone marrow register here and on my drivers licence it says I want to be an organ donor.
Feb 13th 2011, 7:30 pm
#25
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 3,903
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
You can donate bone marrow. I'm on the bone marrow registry. I think at that point when it becomes a one to one donation from a known living donor it is then up to the recipient to accept the risk and they can do extra tests. I guess that would apply to living kidney donations too.
Feb 13th 2011, 8:39 pm
#26
Joined: Apr 2005
Location: Milwaukie, Oregon
Posts: 9,966
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
If those who can no longer donate still want to help out the Red Cross local offices are nearly always looking for volunteers to help at blood drives or to courier urgent blood deliveries to hospitals.
Feb 13th 2011, 8:53 pm
#27
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Mar 2010
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 8,106
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
Pretty sure. I went to a local testing drive for some young girl a while back when I was still in Brooklyn (which brings to mind the point that I might not have told them I have moved). I had a long discussion with one of the people taking the cheek swabs. Basically she said if it turns out to be a match then it's up to the recipient if they want to take the risk. Plus if they do go ahead there are further tests they can do to check for mad cow disease that would be uneconomical to do for all samples but when you have a potential match it becomes worth it.
Feb 14th 2011, 6:58 pm
#28
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Feb 2011
Location: WA state
Posts: 3,062
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
I heard it depended on the place asking for donations. I used to donate when they collected it where I worked in the UK, in the US I haven't really asked.
If the US hadn't had so many of their own BSE outbreaks (and related diseases in other animals) it wouldn't be as funny. It still hasn't actually been proven that vCJD even came from BSE, I was surprised by the number of CJD cases that occured in vegetarians.
If the US hadn't had so many of their own BSE outbreaks (and related diseases in other animals) it wouldn't be as funny. It still hasn't actually been proven that vCJD even came from BSE, I was surprised by the number of CJD cases that occured in vegetarians.
Feb 14th 2011, 7:05 pm
#29
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jun 2005
Location: Oz -> UK -> San Diego
Posts: 9,912
Re: No British blood allowed in the US
Apparently there is a blood test they are working on to see who is a carrier of vCJD.
It really irritates me that I can't give blood here. I gave blood regularly in the UK. I am on the bone marrow register here and on my drivers licence it says I want to be an organ donor.
It really irritates me that I can't give blood here. I gave blood regularly in the UK. I am on the bone marrow register here and on my drivers licence it says I want to be an organ donor.
) I haven't read the research, this info was third hand on a doctors-only forum I frequent.
