The
Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights group, lauds the
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee for
approving the HIV Organ Policy Equity (HOPE) Act, S. 330. The
bipartisan bill sponsored by Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Tom Coburn,
(R-OK), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Rand Paul (R-KY) would lift a federal
ban on the donation of HIV-positive organs to HIV-positive recipients,
making it possible for researchers to study the safety of such
procedures.
Today, more than 100,000 patients are actively waiting for life-saving
organs and about 50,000 more are added annually. Permitting organs from
HIV-positive donors to be used for transplant in HIV-infected patients
with liver or kidney failure could save as many as 1,000 people each
year. As organs from HIV-infected donors would only be transplanted to
HIV-infected transplant candidates, the waiting time for HIV-infected
people who accept HIV-infected organs would most certainly decrease, as
would the general waiting list for uninfected people awaiting
transplants.
“The HOPE Act represents sound public health policy,” said HRC
legislative director Allison Herwitt. “The action by the Senate HELP
Committee is a major step forward in removing an outdated barrier which
impedes access to lifesaving transplants for persons with HIV and AIDS.”
The HOPE Act directs the Department of Health and Human Services and
the Organ Procurement Transplant Network (OPTN) to develop and institute
standards for research on HIV-positive organ transplantation and
permits the Secretary to permit positive-to-positive transplantation if
it is determined that the results of research warrant such a change.
The Secretary would be required to direct OPTN to develop standards to
ensure that positive-to-positive transplantation does not impact the
safety of the organ transplantation network.
Senator Barbara Boxer said, “I applaud the Senate HELP Committee for
approving the HOPE Act, which could save hundreds of lives a year and
would give hope to patients waiting for transplants.”
Knowledge about HIV, AIDS, and treatment of the disease has advanced significantly since the ban was instituted in 1988.
Senator Tom Coburn, a physician, emphasized that, “This legislation
will allow sound science to explore organ exchanges between HIV-positive
donors and HIV-positive recipients. If research shows positive
results, HIV positive patients will have an increased pool of donors.”
The Centers for Disease Control issued draft Public Health Service
Guidelines in September of 2011 that recommended research in this area,
but noted that federal law has blocked this important research from
taking place in the United States. The United Network for Organ Sharing,
which manages the nation’s organ transplant system, and over 40 other
patient and medical advocacy organizations have endorsed the HOPE Act.