October, 2018
On October 3, members of AST’s leadership went to Washington, DC to meet with key legislators about the
Dialysis PATIENTS Demonstration Act and
Living Donor Protection Act. The AST invited members of the transplant patient community to share their personal end-stage renal disease and transplant stories.
The AST brought three kidney recipients and a kidney-pancreas candidate to over a dozen Congressional offices. The Society plans to...
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UNOS released a special public comment this week related to liver and intestinal organ allocation. This new proposal, open October 8 through November 1, removes donor service area and regions.
This is the result of current litigation related to organ allocation. Please visit the OPTN website
here to review the proposal The transplant community is encouraged to attend the national webinar to be conducted by UNOS on October 9. The webinar will provide an important opportunity to learn about the proposal and prepare for...
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The AST partnered with American Association of Kidney Patients, American Society of Nephrology, and American Society of Transplant Surgeons on a
joint letter of continuing concern related to an updated draft of the Dialysis PATIENTS Demonstration Act of 2017 (revisions to H.R. 4143) and its impact of access to kidney transplantation. (October 2018).
To learn more about the AST's public policy efforts,...
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August, 2018
In a formal announcement yesterday, the Department of Labor responded to a legislative provision authored by U.S. Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler and released a legal opinion stating that individuals who choose to donate an organ are covered under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and will not have to fear losing their job.
Earlier this year, Jaime successfully secured a legislative provision in a U.S. House Appropriations funding bill calling for the Department of Labor to issue formal guidance on whether the FMLA protects living donors. The Department of Labor’s legal opinion...
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July, 2018
The transplant community recently lost a trailblazer in the field of Transplant Infectious Diseases with the death of Dr. Robert (Bob) Rubin. Dr. Rubin’s contributions to the development of Transplant Infectious Diseases cannot be understated. He developed innovative practices to include infectious diseases in the routine care of the transplant recipient, including rounding with the transplant team and improving communication between the primary team and consultants. The concepts he developed in our field from identifying the a predictable time course of common infections in the transplant...
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J. Wesley Alexander, MD, ScD, internationally renowned pioneer in transplantation, died Saturday, July 7. He was 84 years old.
Dr. Alexander was named the first director of the Division of Transplantation at the University of Cincinnati (UC) in 1967, a position he held until 1999. On Dec. 11, 1967, he performed UC’s first organ transplant, a kidney transplant. He subsequently performed the first combined kidney-pancreas transplant in 1970 and first liver transplant in 1986. Additionally, Alexander played key roles in the development of UC's burn and surgical infectious disease programs. Dr...
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June, 2018
The American Society of Transplantation (AST) announced the recipients of its 2018 Achievement Awards at the recent American Transplant Congress (ATC) meeting in Seattle, WA. The recipients were awarded for their achievements and contributions to the AST and the field of transplantation.
Lifetime Achievement Award – Robert Gaston, MD
The 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award was awarded to Robert Gaston, MD. It was presented in memory of Dr. Terry Strom.
Dr. Gaston has provided life-saving transplants for thousands of patients and has helped over 100 Fellows become established investigators. He...
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The American Society of Transplantation (AST) announced its recently elected 2018-2019 board members, including its new president, president-elect, and treasurer, at the American Transplant Congress (ATC) in Seattle, WA. The AST inducted its new president, Dianne McKay, MD during its annual meeting on June 4, 2018.
Dr. McKay is the medical director of the kidney transplant program at UC San Diego Health. Her expertise includes pre and post kidney transplant care, pregnancy in transplant recipients, and the care of young adults who are transitioning from pediatric to adult transplant programs...
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May, 2018
MINNEAPOLIS ― May 14, 2018 ― In December 2016, SRTR launched a new website that displayed a new 5-tier outcome assessment for all transplant programs in the United States. This new system, which replaced a 3-tier system, was developed over a period of 5 years and approved by SRTR’s Visiting Committee (SVC). In response to community feedback, the 5-tier system was moved to a
Beta... Read More...
April, 2018
The 2018 board elections are now open through June 4, 2018, at 5 pm PST. Winners of the election will be announced at the AST Town Hall in Seattle, WA.
To view the candidates, please view the
2018 board elections page.
To vote in this election, please follow the instructions in the ballot email. If you have not received an email with voting instructions, please add
elections@vote-now.com to your accepted senders list.
