Jay Inslee: Washington's 1st Congressional District
Issues
Health
House honors fallen colleague by passing kidney-donation bill
Norwood-Inslee legislation offers hope to patients on transplant list
7 March 2007
U.S. Rep. Charlie Norwood (R-Ga.) died less than a month ago, after a long struggle with lung disease and cancer. Fellow members in the House of Representatives honored him today by unanimously passing an organ-donation bill he authored in January with U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.).
"This is a fitting tribute to Charlie's tireless efforts to improve our nation's health-care system and his legacy as a patient advocate," said Inslee during floor consideration of the bill.
The Charlie W. Norwood Living Organ Donation Act, H.R. 710, would make paired kidney donation legal and allow organizations like the United Network for Organ Sharing to track eligibility for paired donation.
Currently, the practice of matching a kidney transplant candidate and an incompatible living donor with another such incompatible pair is not allowed under the National Organ Transplant Act. If paired donation becomes legal, the Journal of Transplantation estimates the number of living kidney donor transplants performed each year will increase by 14 percent.
Norwood, a lung-transplant recipient, released the following statement on the day H.R. 710 was introduced in the House in January: "This legislation provides absolute clarity that paired kidney donations in no way conflict with the ban on organ donation compensation. In return, we will see lives saved by an overall increased supply of donated organs. That benefits all patients on the waiting list."
The Norwood-Inslee bill is widely supported by doctors and patients. Dr. Connie L. Davis, a professor of medicine and kidney transplantation expert at the University of Washington said, "This bill is a huge step forward for the transplant community, as clinical efforts in the direction of paired donation have been severely hampered by concerns over the legal status of such activity. H.R. 710 is the right thing to do for organ transplant candidates and their donors."
Dr. Arthur Matas, president of the American Society of Transplant Surgeons, stated, "This bipartisan legislation is critical to ensuring that as many living donors as possible have the opportunity to provide the gift of life to their loved ones. The ASTS commends Congressman Inslee and Congressman Norwood, as well as the Senate sponsors of companion legislation, for their leadership in clarifying this important area of the law. Passage of this bill will have a ripple effect that will significantly improve the opportunity for transplantation for many Americans as well as the outcomes and quality of life of patients with kidney failure."
"H.R. 710 is an excellent example of how bipartisan commitment to organ donation from living donors can result in life-saving legislation, which will improve the nation's ability to give hope and life to the 95,000 individuals awaiting organ transplants," lauded Dr. Jeffrey S. Crippin, president of the American Society of Transplantation.
And Joyce F. Jackson, president and chief executive officer of the Seattle-based Northwest Kidney Centers, added, "The world's first and oldest dialysis program for kidney patients strongly supports H.R. 710. Twenty-five percent of our dialysis patients are waiting for a kidney transplant, which is an excellent option for many people living with kidney failure. With the passage of this act, we will greatly advance kidney care in this country and avoid the costs of a lifetime of dialysis."
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that legalizing paired kidney donation would save about $30 million over 5 years and $500 million over 10 years. Though costs would increase initially due to a rise of transplant surgeries, they decrease substantially over time because fewer patients would need dialysis.
The Senate is expected to approve the legislation this week, barring any objections from senators. The bill then would go to the president for signature.
Inslee, who penned a provision included in the 2004 Organ Donation and Recovery Improvement Act that provides hospitals and organ-procurement organizations grants to hire organ-donation coordinators, concluded his remarks on the House floor yesterday by saying:
"This bill is not the end of our efforts. I worked for two years with former Congressman Mike Bilirakis to have people in hospitals work with families on donation issues. We need to fund that bill, and I hope we can have a bipartisan effort to do that.
"We have work to do to fund immunosuppressant drugs. I hope we can continue to work in a bipartisan fashion to help the 70,000 Americans waiting for kidney transplants. We will remember Charlie Norwood's efforts in this regard and on future successes."