Canadian Blood Services wants to lift the lifetime ban on sex workers from donating blood in another step to make blood donation more fair.

This step comes following the end last month of the 45-year-old ban on gay and bisexual men donating blood, which was welcomed by Members of Parliament and advocates for the LGBTQ+ community.

Canadian Blood Services said it is ready to recommend that Health Canada reduce the waiting time for sex workers before donating blood to less than a year, but they wanted to make gradual changes.

The duration during which gay men were banned from donating blood was gradually reduced before being completely lifted last month.

Katherine Lewis, spokesperson for Canadian Blood Services, said she requested that Health Canada end the lifetime ban on sex workers donating blood in recent weeks, after conducting research to ensure that the recommendation would keep blood supplies safe.

She said the review was part of a campaign to ensure that blood donation policies are more inclusive and fair. She added, "Currently, we are looking at one year, but we will continue to consider it in the future.

It will not end if it is reduced to one year." The current ban on sex workers donating blood extends for life, but this policy is also under review.

Liberals, led by Justin Trudeau, promised to lift the ban on gay men donating blood during the 2015 election campaign.

But it took years of safety research before it was recommended to Health Canada. Canadian Blood Services, which runs the blood donation program, indicated that it is confident that the ban on sex workers donating blood could be lifted by the fall if Health Canada agrees.

Blood Services is moving towards basic screening for high-risk sexual behavior such as anal sex. By the end of September, all potential donors will be asked whether they have had new or multiple sexual partners in the past three months, regardless of their gender or sexual orientation.

If any potential donor answers yes, they will then be asked whether they have had anal sex with any of these partners. If they have, they will have to wait three months before donating blood.

The Blood Agency believes that asking about sexual behavior will allow for a more reliable assessment of the risk of infections such as HIV that can be transmitted through blood transfusions, and donated blood is tested before being given to patients as a basic step.