Young
U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) cheered last week’s congressional passage of H.R. 2544, the House companion to S. 1668, the Securing the U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Act.
The legislation will help break up the monopoly contract used to manage the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). The bill, which passed the Senate by unanimous consent, now heads to the president’s desk for signature.
“This is an important day for thousands of Americans who are in need of life-saving transplants,” Sen. Young said. “The Securing the U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Act includes necessary reforms that will help ensure accountability and transformation in the organ donation and transplant system. This bipartisan bill will save lives, and I look forward to it being swiftly signed into law.”
The legislation would remove barriers in OPTN contracting and give the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) statutory authority to improve management of the organ transplantation system in the U.S.
As the current OPTN contract is set to expire, the new contract procurement process must begin this fall, making the proposed changes urgent and timely for HRSA to make meaningful reforms. Earlier last week, the House passed H.R. 2544 under suspension with a voice vote.
Last year, the Finance Committee revealed consistent mismanagement and underperformance by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the organization that has held the contract since its inception decades ago. In March, HRSA launched an initiative to modernize the OPTN so it better serves patients and families.
Additional co-sponsors include Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.).