Biden signs Securing the U.S. Organ Procurement Transplantation Network Act into law
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Key takeaways:
- The bipartisan legislation aims to increase competition and transparency in transplantation.
- The legislation reforms the way the Health Resources and Services Administration funds and manages the network.
President Joe Biden signed the Securing the U.S. Organ Procurement Transplantation Network Act into law, according to a statement from the National Kidney Foundation.
“Make no mistake, reforms to the governance of the [Organ Procurement Transplantation Network (OPTN)] will save lives, strengthen accountability and increase transparency,” Kevin Longino, CEO of the National Kidney Foundation, said in a statement. “Provisions in this law will strengthen data collection, reporting and will allow patients to make informed decisions about where and how they receive their care.”
As a result of the OPTN (H.R. 2544), Congress aims to increase competition and transparency in the transplant system by reforming the way the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) funds and manages the network. Under the bipartisan legislation, which was passed by the U.S. House and Senate in July, HRSA can award grants, contracts or cooperative agreements to support the OPTN, while eliminating a cap on the amount of available support funding for the network. The OPTN must operate using select awards, and the Government Accountability Office must review its historical financial operations.
“Far too many kidney patients do not have access to organ transplantation, either because they are too sick to get a transplant, are uneducated about transplant as an option or are poorly served by the system that is in place,” Longino said. “They often wait 3 to 5 years for a transplant, and in some areas of the country, up to 10 years or longer. For communities of color, the kidney disease journey is fraught with obstacles.”
The OPTN may improve transplantation equity and access “by promoting innovation, transparency and accountability across the system,” Longino said. “[It will] modernize the technology that matches donors to recipients and create a more efficient system to maximize the number of organs that can be transplanted.”
References:
American Society of Nephrology celebrates House passage of the Securing the U.S. Organ Procurement Transplantation Network (OPTN) Act (H.R. 2544). https://www.newswise.com/politics/american-society-of-nephrology-celebrates-house-passage-of-the-securing-the-u-s-organ-procurement-transplantation-network-optn-act-h-r-25442/?article_id=796413&sc=dwhr&xy=10007438. Published July 26, 2023. Accessed Sept. 25, 2023.
Bill signed: H.R. 2544. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/legislation/2023/09/22/bill-signed-h-r-2544/. Published Sept. 22, 2023. Accessed Sept. 25, 2023.
National Kidney Foundation: New organ procurement transplant law is gamechanger. https://www.kidney.org/news/national-kidney-foundation-new-organ-procurement-transplant-law-game-changer. Published Sept. 22, 2023. Accessed Sept. 25, 2023.
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