globeandmail.com: Smitherman blasts donor rules for gays

globeandmail.com: Smitherman blasts donor rules for gays

Smitherman blasts donor rules for gays
Homosexuals being ghettoized, he says
CAROLINE ALPHONSO

From Thursday's Globe and Mail

January 24, 2008 at 4:35 AM EST

Canada's only openly gay provincial health minister yesterday criticized Health Canada for "ghettoizing communities," arguing that regulations making it difficult for homosexuals to become organ donors should be eased.

Ontario Health Minister George Smitherman's comments set off a firestorm in Ottawa, with the federal government accusing him of not portraying the reality of the situation.

Following the failings highlighted in Canada's tainted-blood tragedy that left thousands infected with HIV and hepatitis C, Health Canada put in place a series of checks and balances aimed at ensuring all recipients of organ donations were fully aware of the risks involved. This includes telling would-be recipients that if they want to accept an organ from a sexually active gay man, there is a higher risk.

"Surely in this day and age our doctors ... are sophisticated enough to judge the risks posed by a prospective donor without resorting to ghettoizing communities," Mr. Smitherman said in an e-mail exchange yesterday.

"Our drive is to increase donations and save the lives of people languishing on lists. That is my job in part. Why would a regulation be written that ropes off prospective donors?"

But a spokeswoman for federal Health Minister Tony Clement quickly responded, saying the regulation doesn't ban organ donations by sexually active men or other groups considered high-risk. There are exemptions in the policy to allow doctors to conduct transplants even if the donor is in a risk category.

"Health Canada regulations do not prevent gay men from donating organs. The regulations are very clear that the final decision always rests with the recipient patient and the transplant doctor," Laryssa Waler said yesterday.

"These regulations do not constitute a change in policy. They are formalizing a practice that has been ongoing for many years in Canada that has to do with risk assessment. As Minister of Health for Ontario, George Smitherman is well aware of this," she added.

Currently, any organ to be donated is subject to tests and screening. But Health Canada says some groups pose a higher risk. That includes men who have had sex with another man even once in the past five years, those with a recent tattoo or piercing and people who have recently been in jail.

Doctors will test these organs for diseases including HIV and hepatitis, as well as speak with the donor's family or friends to assess their behaviour, before a potential recipient authorizes the use of the organs.

Ken Donohue, a spokesman for the British Columbia Transplant Society, said that because of the long waiting list for life-saving transplants, the province will not exclude anyone from being an organ donor.

"It's not that we say, 'You fall into this category, you cannot be a donor.' We say, 'Okay, in the regulations, Health Canada has said these behaviours are high-risk. Fair enough. But let's assess the person before simply waving them out of the door,' " Mr. Donohue said.

He added: "The regulations essentially put into place certain behaviours which may lead to [being in a] high-risk category. And we need to be extra vigilant in ensuring that organs are safe for transplant. But at the same time, B.C. Transplant has always assessed each potential donor on a case-by-case basis."