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Transplant News

December, 2013

December 30, 2013
The AST recently sent letters to both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee Chairs & Ranking Members. The letters urged for the strongest possible FY 2014 302(b) allocation for the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) Appropriations Subcommittee within the discretionary cap established by the recently Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 (BBA). The Labor-HHS appropriations bill impacts nearly every American through its services and programs including the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and vital medical research... Read More...
December 17, 2013
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health NIH News NIH Office of the Director For Immediate Release: Tuesday, December 17, 2013 Contact: NIH Office of Communications 301-496-5787 nmb@od.nih.gov New Clinical Research Network Holds Great Promise for Improving Treatments for Patients Funding the most effective ways of detecting, treating, and preventing disease is essential to medical progress. Such efforts are known as comparative effectiveness research (CER) and help determine what... Read More...
December 10, 2013
AST and ASTS provided comments on the provision in the Oregon Insurance Division's proposed rule that would establish a benchmark plan for purposes of defining essential health benefits (EHB) under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  Read the full letter to Commissioner Cali.

November, 2013

November 21, 2013
TRIO, the Transplant Recipients International Organization, Inc., announced on Monday, the election of board of director officers for 2014. The following officers were elected: President, James Gleason, a 19-year heart recipient, current President of TRIO, President of the TRIO Philadelphia Chapter, and currently serves on the UNOS Board of Directors Vice President: Harvey Mysel, a 7-year kidney transplant recipient, founder and President of Living Kidney Donation Network (LKDN) Secretary: Steve Okonek, a 20-year liver transplant recipient, Past President of the TRIO San Francisco Bay... Read More...
November 21, 2013
President Obama Signs HIV Organ Policy Equity (HOPE) Act; Joined by the American Society of Transplantation (AST) AST President attends White House Oval Office ceremony to witness the historic signing of important organ transplant legislation WASHINGTON, DC - November 21, 2013 - AST President Dr. Daniel Salomon joined President Obama today at the White House as he signed S. 330, the HIV Organ Policy Equity Act. The legislation, which enjoyed bipartisan and bicameral support, seeks to expand the supply of life-saving organs available for transplantation to the more than 118,000 individuals... Read More...
November 13, 2013
Congress Passes HIV Organ Policy Equity Act (HOPE Act) Legislation will lead to increases in life-saving donor organs and vital research in the area of HIV organ donation and transplantation WASHINGTON, DC – November 13, 2013 – The American Society of Transplantation (AST), representing the majority of professionals engaged in the field of organ transplantation, applauded yesterday's action by the U.S. House of Representatives to bring the HIV Organ Policy Equity Act (HOPE Act) one step closer to being signed into law. The legislation, which has bipartisan support, has now... Read More...
November 11, 2013
Full press release below For Release: November 4, 2013 Brussels, Belgium - - - Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) has announced the publication of a new evidence-based Clinical Practice Guideline making recommendations on treatment of dyslipidemia in chronic kidney disease (CKD). The guideline will appear in the November issue of Kidney International Supplements.  The Clinical Practice Guideline for Lipid Management in Chronic Kidney Disease is KDIGO’s ninth global... Read More...
November 08, 2013
Brian M. Shepard has been selected as Chief Executive Officer of UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing). UNOS matches donated organs with transplant candidates nationwide and manages the national transplant database through contract with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  As Chief Executive Officer, Shepard directs the efforts of more than 300 UNOS staff to ensure that the nation's transplant network efficiently and fairly serves the needs of transplant candidates and recipients, living donors and donor family members, and transplant professionals. He reports to the UNOS... Read More...

October, 2013

October 28, 2013
Attention AST Members: It's time to renew your membership for 2014. Please log in to the AST website today to pay your dues online. If you have forgotten your login credentials, simply click the "Forgot Password" link to have the information emailed to you. Contact the AST office at info@myAST.org with any questions. Important Notice: In order to receive the member-discounted registration rate for the 2014 World Transplant Congress (WTC) in San Francisco, your dues must be paid by March 1, 2014.

September, 2013

September 26, 2013
On September 24th & 25th, AST's Public Policy Committee descended on Capitol Hill and met with more than a dozen Members of Congress in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. A majority of the meetings were with the actual Senators and Congressmen themselves.  The two primary purposes for AST's visits with members of Congress was to: 1) garner further support for federal funding of NIH and medical research; as well as 2) strengthen support and cosponsors for the Transplant Patient Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Patients Act of 2013. The Society's leaders also discussed... Read More...

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