US Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has threatened to close deficient organ procurement organisations after investigations uncovered disturbing practices, including procedures starting while patients were still showing signs of life.
The department has announced a major reformative initiative, with Kennedy warning that the organ procurement companies that co-ordinate access to transplants will be held accountable.
“The entire system must be fixed to ensure every potential donor’s life is treated with the sanctity it deserves,” he said.
The Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) has also been ordered to reopen a case involving potentially preventable harm to a neurologically injured patient by the federally-funded organ procurement organisation (OPO) serving Kentucky, southwest Ohio, and part of West Virginia.
Under the Biden administration, the OPTN’s Membership and Professional Standards Committee had closed the same case without action. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), which conducted the investigations, has now demanded a thorough review.
Additionally, another 351 dodgy cases have been examined, where organ donation was authorised, but ultimately not completed.
The HRSA found:
• 103 cases showed concerning features, including 73 patients with neurological signs incompatible with organ donation.
• At least 28 patients may not have been deceased at the time organ procurement was initiated – raising serious ethical and legal questions.
• Evidence pointed to poor neurologic assessments, lack of co-ordination with medical teams, questionable consent practices, and misclassification of causes of death, particularly in overdose cases.
HRSA has directed the OPTN to improve safeguards and monitoring at all levels.HHS article – HHS Finds Systemic Disregard for Sanctity of Life in Organ Transplant System (Open access)
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