Donors should get first pick for organs

David J. Undis Nashville, Tenn. Editor’s note: Undis is executive director of LifeSharers.
Published: June 10, 2008

The generosity of live organ donors like Ann Hanna is wonderful (“Giving friendship new life: New Hope woman donating her kidney to a friend in need,” June 5). It’s a shame we need so many live organ donors. Americans bury or cremate 20,000 transplantable organs every year.
There is another good way to put a big dent in the organ shortage — if you don’t agree to donate your organs when you die, then you go to the back of the waiting list if you ever need an organ to live.
Giving organs first to organ donors will convince more people to register as organ donors. It will also make the organ allocation system more fair. About 50 percent of the organs transplanted in the United States go to people who haven’t agreed to donate their own organs when they die.
Anyone who wants to donate their organs to others who have agreed to donate theirs can join LifeSharers. LifeSharers is a nonprofit network of organ donors who agree to offer their organs first to other organ donors when they die. Membership is free at http://www.lifesharers.org or by calling 1-888-ORGAN88.