WHEREAS there is a critical blood shortage in the United States right now,

WHEREAS this shortage is so critical that surgeries are being postponed in some regions,

WHEREAS there is screening available to detect bloodborne illnesses with only a minimal margin of error,

WHEREAS gender identity/biologic sex at birth of 2 sexual partners alone is not solely indicative of risk level for bloodborne illness, and there are many more dangerous and higher risk factors,

WHEREAS HIV, while incurable, has shown enormous progress in terms of palliation over the past 3 decades,

AND WHEREAS organizations involved with marrow and organ donation such as Be The Match have lifted the ban on sexually active male individuals with male partners and continue to successfully save lives,

LET IT BE KNOWN that we, the undersigned petition the FDA to reconsider and potentially revoke barring male individuals currently sexually active with other males from donating blood based solely on that single criteria.