Five takeaways from Congress’ hearing on overhauling organ transplant system
WASHINGTON — On Wednesday, two transplant doctors, one watchdog and a nephrologist-turned-advocate sat before members of Congress to talk about the nation’s troubled organ transplant system. For over two hours the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations ran through allegations of inefficiency, inertia, negligence and corruption in the groups charged with coordinating transplants throughout the U.S. New, jaw-dropping claims also came to light.
It’s been a year since the private nonprofit United Network for Organ Sharing lost its longtime job as the sole manager of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, or OPTN — a role UNOS had held since 1986. Now, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is seeking other contractors to run parts of the massive system that oversees tens of thousands of transplants per year. Disagreements about who should be involved in overhauling the OPTN and how it should be run have delayed that process, Politico reports.
