November, 2017
On November 7, the House of Representatives passed the Veterans Increased Choice for Transplanted Organs and Recovery (VICTOR) Act of 2017.
This bill amends the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014. Under this bill, veterans will be eligible to receive hospital care and medical services through agreements with the Department of Defense, the Indian Health Service, federally-qualified health centers, or health care providers that participate in the Medicare program. Veterans who require an organ transplant and live more than 100 miles from a Department of Veterans Affairs...
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Today, the Veterans Transplant Coverage Act was passed in the House of Representatives. Under this modified act, the Veterans Affairs Department (VA) could pay for a living donation to a veteran by any live donor, including at facilities outside the VA that are part of the Veterans Choice Program.
Previously, the VA was not required to provide funding to living donors who were not eligible for VA health care. The department will now provide services to the donor before and after the procedure, subject to the availability of funds.
The American Society of Transplantation (AST) applauds the...
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October, 2017
Liver distribution proposal and webinar
The committee voted to reject the proposal as it was initially written in the version issued for public comment, then voted to support a revised version based on specific feedback requested during public comment. While certain components were generally supported, the consensus of public input recommended changes to other features.
The committee will bring the compromise proposal to the OPTN/UNOS Board of Directors in December. The revised proposal continues to address the essential elements of the public comment proposal, but with key modifications...
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Mount Laurel, NJ - October 23, 2017 – Today, the American Society of Transplantation (AST) launches a new fundraising initiative called
Power2Save to address the critical need for funding transplant research and to increase public awareness for organ donation. Approximately 50 percent of all transplanted organs will experience failure within five to ten years, typically due to organ rejection or complications from immunosuppressive drugs.
Organ transplants save patient lives by replacing critical body parts that are failing. However, these life-saving...
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September, 2017
On behalf of the AST, I would like to congratulate
Angelica Hale for her success on NBC’s America’s Got Talent. Last night on the show’s finale, Angelica came in second place, but her inspiring transplant story has touched millions.
At the age of 5, Angelica lost kidney function after double pneumonia. To keep her spirits up, her parents enrolled her in singing lessons, which would later lead to her incredible voice and involvement with America’s Got Talent. During this time, her mother, Eva, found out that she was a match to be her daughter’s...
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The AST has opened nominations for the 2018 Board Elections. If you are interested in becoming a board member or know an AST member who meets our criteria, you may
find more information here.
Nominations will close on November 30, 2017.
To identify the organ utilization practices of transplant programs, SRTR is working toward including program-specific offer acceptance practices in the program-specific reports (PSRs). Kidney offer acceptance was integrated into the PSRs in July 2017. Since then, SRTR has developed liver, heart and lung offer acceptance models and plans to integrate offer acceptance reports for these organs into the January 2018 PSRs. The models are being previewed ...
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There's now a new, innovative way to contribute to the AST, and all it takes is your spare change.
Coin Up allows you to donate your spare change directly to the AST, every time you make a purchase with your credit or debit card by virtually rounding up your “spare change” on each transaction. At the end of the month, your spare change is added up to a maximum limit set by you. Now, when you're buying groceries, picking up your dry cleaning, or even filling up your gas tank, you are incrementally donating to the AST without a second thought.
With Coin Up, you will be able to monitor your...
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On September 29, 2017, a transplantation and organ donation focused film entitled "A Question of Faith" will begin playing in theaters.
This film features three families who live in the same community and addresses organ, tissue, & eye donation advocacy. The trailer for this movie can be seen below.
The AST is saddened to hear about the passing of UNOS founder and original executive director, Gene Pierce. He passed away at the age of 87.
Pierce began his transplant career in 1964 as a surgical administrator at the Medical College of Virginia (VCU Health). In 1984, UNOS was founded with Pierce as its executive director.
Pierce retired in 1995. The national network had grown to include 60 organ procurement organizations and more than 220 transplant hospitals, performing more than 19,000 transplants per year.
