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New blood donation rules allow more gay men to give in US

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(AP) — Gay and bisexual men in monogamous relationships can give blood in the US without abstaining from sex under updated federal health guidelines that focus on donors’ behaviour, not their sexual orientation.

The Food and Drug Administration guidelines finalised Thursday ease decades-old restrictions designed to protect the blood supply from HIV. The agency announced plans for the change in January and said this week the new approach can now be implemented by blood banks.

The updated guidelines do away with a requirement that men who have sex with men abstain from sex for three months prior to giving blood.

Instead, all potential donors — regardless of sexual orientation, sex or gender — will be screened with a new questionnaire that evaluates their individual risks for HIV based on sexual behaviour, recent partners and other factors. Potential donors who report having anal sex with new partners in the last three months will be barred from giving until a later date.

The FDA said the new policy reflects the latest scientific evidence and is in line with rules in the UK and Canada.

It’s the latest move by the FDA to broaden donor eligibility, with the potential to boost donations.

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“The implementation of these recommendations will represent a significant milestone for the agency and the LGBTQI+ community,” Dr Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s center for biological therapies, said in a statement.

Gay rights groups have long opposed blanket restrictions on who can give blood, saying they discriminate. Medical societies including the American Medical Association have also said such exclusions are unnecessary given advances in blood testing.

Anyone who has ever tested positive for HIV will continue to be ineligible to donate blood. Those taking pills to prevent HIV through sexual contact will also still be barred, until three months after their last dose. The FDA noted that the medications, known as PrEP, can delay the detection of the virus in screening tests.

The Human Rights campaign, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, called Thursday’s announcement “a real step forward” in a statement. It added that more “can and must be done so that people taking PrEP can donate as well.”

The FDA sets requirements and procedures for US blood banks. All potential donors answer questions about their sexual history, injectable drug use and any recent tattoos or piercings, among other factors that can contribute to the spread of blood-borne infections. Donated blood is then tested for HIV, hepatitis C, syphilis and other infectious diseases.

In 2015, the FDA dropped the lifetime ban on donations from men who have sex with men and replaced it with a one-year abstinence requirement. Then in 2020, the agency shortened the abstinence period to three months, after donations plummeted during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Regulators said there has been no negative impact on the blood supply as a result of those changes.

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REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

(CONSULTING SERVICES – INDIVIDUAL SELECTION)

 

OECS MSME Guarantee Facility Project

Loan No.: IDA-62670, IDA-62660, IDA-62640, IBRD-88830, IDA-62650

Assignment Title: Senior Operating Officer (SOO)

Reference No. KN-ECPCGC-207852-CS-INDV

 

The Governments of Antigua and Barbuda, Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have received financing in the amount of US$10 million equivalent from the World Bank towards the cost of establishing a partial credit guarantee scheme, and they intend to apply part of the proceeds to payments for goods, and consulting services to be procured under this project. 

The consultant will serve as the “Senior Operating Officer (SOO)” for the ECPCGC and should possess extensive knowledge of MSME lending with some direct experience lending to Micro, small and medium-sized businesses, knowledge of the internal control processes necessary for a lending operation and the ability to design and implement risk mitigation procedures. The ideal candidate should possess an Undergraduate Degree from a reputable college or university, preferably in Business, Accounting, Banking or related field, with a minimum of 5 years’ experience in lending, inclusive of MSME lending. The initial employment period will be for two years on a contractual basis. Renewal of the contract will be subject to a performance evaluation at the end of the contractual period. The assignment is expected to begin on September 30th, 2021.  The consultant will report directly to the Chief Executive Officer of the ECPCGC.

The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment can be viewed by following the attached link below. 

 

https://bit.ly/3iVannm

 

The Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECPCGC) now invites eligible “Consultants” to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have:

  • An Undergraduate Degree from a reputable college or university, preferably in Business, Finance, Banking or related field; and
  • Minimum of 5 years’ experience in MSME lending. Applicants should also have:
  • The ability to design and implement risk management procedures 
  • Extensive knowledge of MSME lending with some direct experience lending to small and medium-sized businesses
  • Extensive knowledge of MSME banking operations
  • Knowledge of the internal controls necessary for a lending operation and the ability to design and implement risk management procedures
  • Experience developing and presenting information in public, including responding to questions in real-time
  • Experience lending to MSMEs located in the ECCU
  • Knowledge of marketing and communicating with the MSME sector
  • Ability to draft procedures to be used in a lending operation
  • Familiarity with the mechanics of a loan guarantee program
  • Exceptional written, oral, interpersonal, and presentation skills, and
  • Proficiency in the use of Microsoft Office suite.

The attention of interested Individual Consultants is drawn to Section III, Paragraphs 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers July 2016, [revised November 2017] (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest. A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Approved Selection Method for Individual Consultants set out in the clause 7.34 of the World Bank Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers. 

 

Further information can be obtained at the address below during office hours 0800 to 1700 hours:

Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation

Brid Rock, Basseterre,

St. Kitts.

Expressions of interest must be delivered in a written form by e-mail by August 11th, 2021, to [email protected]

 

For further information, please contact:

Carmen Gomez-Trigg                                                            Bernard Thomas

Chief Executive Officer                                                          Chief Financial Officer

Tel: 868-620-8144                                                                  Tel: 869-765-2385

Email: [email protected]                                          [email protected]