The Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) is a public-private partnership that manages the US organ donation and transplantation system. Today, more than 100,000 people are on the organ transplant waiting list, and 17 people die every day waiting for an organ to become available. Chronic performance problems related to technology, transportation and allocation, among other issues, have led to many congressional inquiries and oversight investigations. In March 2023, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announced the OPTN Modernization Initiative, which aims to strengthen the OPTN in five areas: technology, data transparency, governance, operations and quality improvement and innovation. Read on as we explore recent developments with the Modernization Initiative and look ahead to what’s next.
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Key Takeaways
- The Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) is a public-private partnership that manages the US organ donation and transplantation system. Today, more than 100,000 people are on the organ transplant waiting list, and 17 people die every day waiting for an organ to become available.
- The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) is the nonprofit organization that holds the government contract to manage the OPTN. Chronic performance problems related to technology, transportation and allocation, among other issues, have led to many congressional inquiries and oversight investigations.
- In March 2023, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announced the OPTN Modernization Initiative, which aims to strengthen the OPTN in five areas: technology, data transparency, governance, operations, and quality improvement and innovation.
- As part of the Modernization Initiative, HRSA has begun the process of restructuring the OPTN contract, which means that no one entity will control the entire network. Instead, HRSA will issue multiple tailored contracts to harness domain-specific, best-in-class expertise.
- To support the Modernization Initiative, Congress enacted legislation in September 2023 authorizing HRSA to expand competition for OPTN contracts. Although this legislation gave the agency additional flexibility, Congress has yet to appropriate the additional funding necessary to accomplish HRSA’s modernization goals.
- HRSA and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced the “Organ Transplantation Affinity Group” in September 2023, along with specific strategies to achieve the group’s five goals: reducing variation in pre-transplant practices, increasing organ availability, enhancing accountability, promoting equitable access and engaging patients and families.
