New York will provide up to $10,000 to living organ donors through new legislation
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Governor Kathy Hochul of New York signed the New York State Living Donor Support Act to provide direct reimbursement up to $10,000 to living organ donors, according to an American Kidney Fund press release.
This is the first law in the United States that will give living organ donors direct reimbursement for donation-related expenses, such as lost wages, travel, lodging, childcare, medications and medical care. Donors are only eligible if they and the organ recipient are New York residents.
Although some states offer tax credits to living organ donors, none provide direct reimbursements like the bill passed in New York, which was sponsored by Sen. Gustavo Rivera and Assemblymember Richard N. Gottfried.
“With the passage of S. 1594/A. 146A, New York is setting a nationwide precedent for removing financial obstacles that may discourage people from becoming living organ donors,” Holly Bode, the vice president of government affairs at AKF, told Healio. “We are hopeful that other states will follow New York’s lead to reduce barriers for donors and subsequently help more Americans get off the transplant waitlist. Currently, 13 Americans die every day waiting for a kidney transplant and increasing the number of living organ donors is the surest and fastest way to reduce the number of Americans on the transplant waiting list. By eliminating some of the hurdles that people face when deciding whether to give the gift of life, these laws are ultimately helping increase the supply of desperately needed kidneys, reduce transplant wait times and save thousands of lives.”
As Healio previously reported, the AKF graded New York on state protection laws in the annual Living Donor Protection Report Card. With the recently passed legislation, New York will maintain its grade B.
“The AKF’s Report Card measures seven types of legislation that states can enact to provide protections for living organ donors and encourage living donations. In the absence of federal legislation to protect living organ donors, we have an uneven patchwork of protections that varies by state, and some states have no protections at all. Overall, the average grade in the U.S. is a C,” Bode said. “In order for New York to earn an A grade on the report card, the state would have to enact additional laws to protect living organ donors, such as job-protected leave from private employers or paid leave via Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) law.”
Read more about
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts