Israel eases restrictions on blood donations by gay men

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s health minister says he has lifted restrictions on blood donations by gay men, saying the longstanding query posed to prospective donors were discriminatory and denigrating. Nitzan Horowitz, who himself is openly gay, wrote in a Facebook post Thursday that the Health Ministry had “removed the denigrating and irrelevant questions” in questionnaires for blood donors, and that everyone would be treated equally regardless of sexual orientation. The decision came shortly after similar decisions by the U.K. and U.S. in the past year.