March, 2021
March is National Kidney Month and April is National Donate Life Month. As leading, independent, national organizations representing patients, organ donors and their families, transplant surgeons, and transplant health professionals, the American Association of Kidney Patients (AAKP), the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS), the American Society of Transplantation (AST) restate our commitment to increased altruistic living organ donation through greater legal protections for a person who becomes a living organ donor. It is unacceptable that Americans with kidney failure are forced...
Read More...
The Living Donor Protection Act of 2021 Would Protect Organ Donors From High Insurance Premiums And Create Programs That Encourage Organ Donation.
At the start of National Kidney Month, U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Tom Cotton (R-AR) and U.S. Representatives Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA) introduced legislation to protect the rights of living organ donors. The Living Donor Protection Act would protect living donors from high insurance premiums, codify Department of Labor (DOL) guidance that covers living donors under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA...
Read More...
February, 2021
On February 25, 2021, the American Society of Transplantation proudly presented the AST Innovation Award to the OPTN/UNOS Disease Transmission Advisory Committee (DTAC). This award was accepted on behalf of DTAC by Dr. Jay Fishman, Dr. Michael Ison, and Dr. Ricardo La Hoz, at the virtual Cutting Edge of Transplantation (CEoT) meeting.
DTAC started as an advisory group to the UNOS Board to consider issues related to organ donor-derived infections and malignancies in 2004 and was made into a permanent UNOS committee in 2007.
Before the inception of DTAC, there was no standardized or required...
Read More...
December, 2020
After nearly 20 years of tireless advocacy from the transplant stakeholder community and some very committed Congressional leaders, the Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act (Immuno Bill) was passed today by Congress and signed into law by President Trump.
The AST commends Senators Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Durbin (D-IL) and Congressmen Burgess, M.D. (R-TX) and Kind (D-WI) for their steadfast support and commitment over many sessions of Congress to make today’s passage a reality.
“Today’s passage of the Immuno Bill by the U.S. Senate and House of...
Read More...
After nearly 20 years of tireless advocacy from the transplant stakeholder community and some very committed Congressional leaders, the Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act (Immuno Bill) was passed by the U.S. Congress.
The AST commends Senators Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Durbin (D-IL) and Congressmen Burgess, M.D. (R-TX) and Kind (D-WI) for their steadfast support and commitment over many sessions of Congress to make today’s passage a reality.
The AST, representing a majority of medical professionals engaged in solid organ transplantation, has long...
Read More...
After nearly 20 years of tireless advocacy from the transplant stakeholder community and some very committed Congressional leaders, the Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act (Immuno Bill) was passed today by the U.S. House of Representatives. It is now being sent to the Senate for approval.
The AST, representing a majority of medical professionals engaged in solid organ transplantation, has long advocated for removing the 36-month immunosuppressive drug coverage limitation for kidney transplant patients. The Immuno Bill passage has remained a top...
Read More...
Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act (Immuno Bill).
“Today’s House passage of the Immuno Bill is a huge victory for kidney transplant recipients, donors, and their families,” stated AST President Dr. Richard Formica.
The AST, representing a majority of medical professionals engaged in the field of solid organ transplantation, commends the steadfast commitment and resolve of Immuno Bill champions Congressmen Ron Kind (D-WI) and Dr. Michael Burgess, M.D. (R-TX) for their extraordinary efforts to...
Read More...
November, 2020
Thanks to the generous offer from CareDx, all donations up to $50,000 that are designated to research will be 100% matched from November 24 – December 8, 2020.
The AST hopes to raise enough funds during this campaign to fund a 2021 transplant research grant. To donate, please visit our
donation page.
How This Campaign Works With the Donation Derby
COP members interested in contributing to the Donation Derby can support their COP(s) and the AST Research Fund.
COPs will receive the original donation according to the...
Read More...
A number of transplant organizations from around the world continue their partnership to create a fourth educational webinar for the organ donation and transplantation communities. Our goal is to share experiences to date and respond to your questions about the impact of COVID-19 on organ donation and transplantation. COVID-19: Organ Donation and Transplant Town Hall #4 was recorded on December 3, 2020.
View Recording
Talks include:
What happened to transplantation during the COVID-19 Pandemic?
U.S. Experience (David...
Read More...
The AST Board of Directors has approved an expansion of the AST Achievement Awards to offer additional opportunities to members who are almost exclusively clinically or administratively focused. These awards will complement AST’s extensive research-focused award offerings and allow the Society to recognize the extensive contributions of members in diverse roles within transplant.
Three graduated Distinguished Career Awards will be open to non-physician clinicians and administrators at various stages of their careers. Members eligible for these awards include, but are not limited to,...
Read More...
