What’s interesting about the law is that is was the result of lobbying by the Illinois Coalition of Community Blood Centers to increase the number of potential blood donors by allowing people to donate blood within a year of getting tattoos or piercings. The blood will still undergo rigorous testing, but abolishing the current year-long wait will no longer discourage the tattooed and pierced from donating — and, overall, no longer make people feel like social pariahs.
Nice. I’ve been annoyed by the 12 month waiting period between getting a new tattoo and giving blood pretty much since I got my first tattoo. I have a semi-rare blood type and actually like to give blood. However, I also plan to continue getting tattoos (probably at least annually) for the near term.
I’m glad to see some lawmakers initiating a change. Hopefully Illinois will start a trend.
Nobody wants your rare, ink-rich blood, freakshow.
Strangely enough, getting blood transfusions in a former third-world country and Germany (Home of the Mad Cow Disease!) excludes one from the list of available donors. I’m O-Pos, which is something good or bad. I can’t remember which.
Is that a permanent exclusion? Seems silly…
Type O blood is the universal blood type and can be transfused to patients with other blood types so that’s why its so special. Luckily for me, I didn’t eat a hamburger in Bern, give my blood to a Ethiopian transient or ink a giant cock on my arm in the past year so I’m free to be bled on a bi-monthly basis. Bonus: you get an ice cream sandwich when all is said and done.
I don’t think it’s a permanent thing, but it does last a while. I have to go check and see when I’m able to give next.
“how often do you get back to haiti???”
WILL SOMETHING HAPPEN TO ME IF I JUST GET A TAT AND GIVE BLOOD WITHOUT THEM KNOWING???
They will take away your caps lock key.
And you will probably die a horrible death.