[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 101 (Tuesday, June 20, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1298-E1299]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


    GIVE THE GIFT OF LIFE--SUPPORT THE ORGAN DONATION INSERT CARD ACT

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                         HON. RICHARD J. DURBIN

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 20, 1995
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing legislation along 
with Representative Dave Camp to encourage organ donation through a 
highly cost-effective campaign of public education. I am pleased to 
note that Senator Byron Dorgan is introducing similar legislation in 
the Senate.
  The most common tragedy in organ transplantation is not the patient 
who received a [[Page E 1299]] transplant and dies, but the patient who 
has to wait too long and dies before a suitable organ can be found.
  The demand for organs greatly exceeds the supply. More than 40,000 
people are now waiting for an organ transplant, including more than 
1,400 children and more than 25,000 people who must have a kidney 
dialysis while they wait for a kidney to become available. More than 
3,000 people on the waiting list will die this year before receiving a 
transplant. Meanwhile, another person is added to the list every 18 
minutes.
  Our legislation, known as the Organ Donation Insert Card Act, would 
direct the Secretary of the Treasury to enclose, with each income tax 
refund check mailed next Spring, an insert card that encourages organ 
donation.
  The insert would include a detachable organ donor card. It would also 
include a message urging recipients to sign the card, tell their 
families about their willingness to be an organ donor if the occasion 
arises, and encourage family members to request or authorize organ 
donation if the occasion arises.
  The text of the card would be developed by the Secretary of the 
Treasury after consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services and organizations promoting organ donation.
  This proposal poses no logistical problems. Every year, the Treasury 
Department already puts an insert card in refund check mailings. In 
recent years, the insert cards have offered special coins for sale, 
such as last year's offer of World Cup commemorative coins. Shifting 
from an appeal about coins to an appeal about organ donation for 1 year 
could save a number of lives for many years to come.
  This is also a highly cost-effective proposal. According to the 
Treasury Department, around 70 million households would receive this 
appeal at
 a cost of $210,000. There is no other way to reach so many households 
at such a modest cost.

  Our approach also emphasizes the most important and often overlooked 
step in encouraging organ donation, which is talking to one's family 
beforehand.
  Most people don't realize that a signed organ donor card does not 
ensure a donation. In order for an organ donation to take place, the 
next-of-kin must authorize it. If your family has not heard you express 
the desire to be an organ donor, they may be reluctant to authorize it. 
That is why talking to your family is critical.
  Unfortunately, most Americans have never signed an organ donor card, 
and many of those who have signed a card have never discussed the 
matter with their family members. As a result, family members hesitate 
to authorize organ donation and opportunities to save lives are lost.
  According to a Gallup poll cosponsored by the Partnership for Organ 
Donation, more than 90 percent of the public would authorize organ 
donation if their loved one had expressed that wish before death, but 
less than half would consent to donation if the discussion had not 
occurred. Unfortunately, according to the survey, less than half of the 
public have told their families of their wishes regarding donation.
  Our bill is specifically designed to address this problem. Since 
organ donation begins with people who decide they want to be an organ 
donor if they should die unexpectedly, our bill encourages people to 
sign an organ donor card. But since an actual organ donation often 
hinges on whether loved ones are aware of that desire, our bill also 
encourages people to tell their family members about their desire to be 
an organ donor and urge their family to authorize a donation if the 
occasion arises.
  By emphasizing the importance of family discussion, this legislation 
could expand the pool of potential donors, increase the likelihood that 
families will authorize donation for their loved ones, and reduce the 
number of people who die while waiting for transplants.
  This legislation has the support of the United Network for Organ 
Sharing [UNOS], the American Nurses Association, and the National 
Kidney Foundation. Similar legislation in the 103d Congress had the 
support of nearly 20 organizations involved in the organ 
transplantation field, and we expect similar support this year.
  This measure is desperately needed. When I first introduced the 
legislation in 1990, just over 20,000 people were on the waiting list 
and around 2,000 of those people died before receiving a transplant. 
Today, the waiting list has doubled in size, and more than 3,000 
waiting list deaths are anticipated this year. Only a broad public 
education campaign can make a dent in these figures.
  I urge my colleagues to join me as a cosponsor of this bill and 
encourage all Americans to ``give the gift of life'' by authorizing 
organ donations when the opportunity arises.


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