Court rules gay men can't donate blood

Gary rights groups say Canadian Blood Services is practicing discrimination, but the court rule says the agency is not bound by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

An Ontario court has upheld the Canadian Blood Services policy of not accepting blood donations from men who have sex with men. The decision angered many gay rights groups, but the blood agency says its policies are designed to protect the safety of recipients, and have nothing to do with stereotypes of homosexual men. In Canada, gay men have a much higher rate of HIV infection and other blood-borne diseases than other Canadians. The ruling means that any man who's had sex with another man since 1977 can legally be barred from giving blood. That year is generally accepted as the time when HIV first appeared in Canada.