Securing the U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2544, the Securing the U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Act, seeks to improve the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, or OPTN.

This network, which is operated by the Health Resources and Service Administration, or HRSA, is responsible for maintaining a national registry for organ matching, and it is operated by a private organization under Federal contract.

A number of investigations in the past few years have found that the OPTN struggles to obtain and distribute organs in a timely and efficient manner. In fact, more than 6,000 Americans die each year while waiting for organ transplants. This problem is even more pronounced for people of color and rural residents.

More than 100,000 Americans are currently on the transplant waiting list, and 17 Americans die each day awaiting transplants. This is entirely unacceptable, and we need to do better for the many patients who rely on the OPTN. The OPTN needs to be improved and modernized in a number of ways.

HRSA has undertaken a number of efforts to modernize the OPTN, and this bill, H.R. 2544, complements those efforts. It would ensure that HRSA has the authority to award multiple contracts to carry out the many functions of the OPTN. It would also make the OPTN contracts more competitive in order to increase oversight and transparency and to enhance the performance of the program.

The organ transplantation network is a lifesaving system that is in desperate need of repair. This bill will go a long way to improve it, and it is a huge win for some of the most vulnerable patients in this country.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representatives Bucshon and Kelly for their bipartisan leadership on this bill. I am pleased that it is before us today, and I encourage all of my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this important legislation.

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