NO TIME TO DISCRIMINATE

Re: “Blood compromise”, (PostBag, Oct 13).

As I noted in my letter, despite the lie that gay men are being discriminated against, high-risk heterosexuals such as intravenous drug users are also asked to not donate blood.

There was a time (I don’t know if the rule changed) when even a man who went to a female prostitute in the past 12 months was told to not donate blood.

Because of the risk of false negatives, testing alone is not enough. Questionnaires where they ask people about their lifestyles are essential for maintaining a safe blood bank. And the evidence shows that most people — gay or straight — are decent enough to answer the questions truthfully.

Eric Bahrt