Israel lifted restrictions on voluntary blood donation by homosexuals, and Health Minister Nican Horovic said that the long-standing restriction was discriminatory and humiliating.
Until now, men who wanted to donate blood were asked to answer the question whether they had sexual relations with persons of the same sex in the past year, because in that case they could not be donors.
Now, potential donors are asked if they have had high-risk sexual relations with a partner in the past three months, and gender-neutral wording is used.
Minister Horovic, a declared homosexual, announced that the Ministry of Health "removed humiliating and irrelevant questions" in the questionnaires for blood donors and added that the relationship will be equal to everyone, regardless of sexual orientation.
"There is no difference between one blood and another. Discrimination against homosexuals who donate blood is over," said Horovic.
Israeli LGBT rights organizations welcomed the move, calling it important for equality in Israel.
This year, Great Britain eased restrictions on voluntary blood donation by gay and bisexual people, following a similar decision in the US due to a reduction in blood supplies.
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