Organ Transplants: Procurement, Procedures and Allocation Policies

In 1984, legislation created the first computerized system for matching sick patients with the organs they need. It was called the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. The group that oversees and coordinates the network is the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), which has nearly 400 members, including 252 transplant centers and 57 regional organizations known as organ procurement organizations (OPOs). Each OPO has a defined geographic service area. Serious errors in the procurement and transplantation system are shockingly common. Between 2010 and 2020, more than 1,100 complaints were filed by patients and families, staff and transplant centers. These errors have cost lives; approximately 6,000 Americans die each year while waiting for an organ transplant.