Overhauling the Organ Transplant and Donation Program
On Wednesday, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra testified before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Related Agencies. The hearing came hours after the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announced its intent to overhaul the organ procurement and transplant network (OPTN) contract. During the hearing, I secured a commitment from Secretary Becerra that the department will work to create a more transparent and open process for the OPTN contract.
The sole contract to oversee the nation’s organ transplant system has been held by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) for more than 30 years. In 2018, UNOS developed a new liver allocation policy that colluded against Midwest and Southern states. As the result of a lawsuit, UNOS was required to publicly release emails in 2021 that revealed clear collusion between UNOS, a New England-area organ procurement organization, and others as they crafted the new liver allocation policy.
For years, my former colleague Roy Blunt and I have continually flagged for HHS how harmful and unfair the liver allocation rule is for the Midwest and the South. New data released last week by the Washington Post confirmed Kansas has been significantly harmed by the new liver allocation formula since implementation began in 2020. In 2021 alone, between 51-75% of livers donated in Kansas were transported to an out-of-state patient. Our state also saw a 50% decrease in liver transplants from 2019 to 2020. These statistics are devastating to a state where organ donations remain high but where we are seeing more deaths as a result of the unfair liver allocation formula.
HRSA’s proposal to divide up the OPTN contract and open competition for contracts to new organizations is certainly a step in the right direction. I am hopeful the department is beginning to take the life and death battles Americans are facing through the current OPTN system more seriously.
You can watch my full questioning of Secretary Bercerra here.