Pace University hosted its first blood drive of 2016 on Wed., Feb. 3 in Gottesman with help from the Red Cross and Future Leaders in Health Care (FLIHC). Eligible students and faculty filled out donation consent forms and then the Red Cross set them up to donate.

FLIHC, formerly known as Student Nurses at Pace (SNAP), members said that the blood drive had at least 50 people sign up to give blood. However, some of those who signed up to donate may not have qualified and were then turned down.

FLIHC members greeted potential donors, who immediately saw a poster board from the Red Cross explaining conditions in which donors would need to talk to staff before donating.

Students who have tried to donate previously may already know the general conditions.

Senior biology major Tiffany Lin knew before even looking at the poster that the 110-pound weight requirement would prevent her from donating due to her experience at a previous drive.

The Red Cross’ website also lists their eligibility criteria, breaking it down into categories including: medications and vaccinations, medical conditions, medical treatments, lifestyle and life events, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and travel outside the U.S. Many of these conditions make sense for safety reasons. For example, if a student is on antibiotics to treat an infection, then there is potential for the bacteria could be transferred to the blood receiver if donated. Healthy blood is the ultimate goal for both the donor and receiver.

Yet some conditions require donors to wait at least a year before donating again.

Freshman nursing major Madalynne Martone found out last semester that she was ineligible to donate due to a new tattoo she had gotten in October. Martone, a previous blood donor, explained that she waited 30 minutes before finding out that her new tattoo would prevent her from donating blood. A staff member at the drive said that any tattoos in New York are unregulated by the state, and the donors are required to wait a year before donating again.

The Red Cross also lists Massachusetts, Maryland, and Pennsylvania as states with unregulated tattoos.

“Who would have thought that a small tattoo would stop someone from donating?” said Martone, who decided to volunteer for the drive instead.

The rules regarding nonregulated tattoos will not change anytime soon, but there was a change in the policy that February’s blood drive did not address.

The Red Cross and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had indefinitely turned down males who have had sex with other males (MSM)—until this past December.

The FDA enacted the original indefinite deferral during the 1980s when the AIDS epidemic exponentially increased, especially in the gay community. Though all blood gets tested for HIV, Hepatitis B and C, among other tests, the restriction still targeted males specifically.

The FDA changed its policies with regards to MSM to a deferral for one year after the last experience in 2015 as mentioned.

According to the Red Cross, the organization will be continuously working to update its literature and systems to reflect this change. The required packet for donors at the blood drive still listed all males who have sex in any form with other males as ineligible, so it is unknown how many male students decided not to donate thinking that they were still banned.

Though the restrictions have technically changed on a national level, students still find outrage in the handling of MSM donations.

“The law is really unfair because if you are underweight, it is a medication condition that you could potentially treat by gaining weight. If you got a new tattoo, you’ll be able to donate in a certain amount of time. With gay males [or any males who had sex with males] they can’t change their sexuality,” senior LeeAnn Reynolds said.