Organ donors medal proposed

[Guest guest]

Organ

donors medal proposed

May 14, 2007

WASHINGTON - Organ donors and their surviving relatives should be

recognized with a new congressional medal, says a bipartisan group in Congress

and several organizations aiding transplant work.

Democrats and Republicans from

several states are backing the proposed medal program and want to name it after

former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a former

heart and lung transplant surgeon. Frist,

a Tennessee Republican, was among those in past years seeking more support to

pass a " gift of life " medal program.

Dr. Crippin,

a liver specialist in St.

Louis

and president of the American Society of Transplantation, said naming the medal

program after Frist " is very appropriate. His efforts were crucial in getting transplant-related

issues to the forefront of the congressional schedule. "

Among

Tennesseans endorsing the medal legislation are Democratic Rep. Jim of

Nashville, Republican Reps. Zach Wamp of Chattanooga

and Marsha Blackburn of Brentwood, and Republican Sens.

Lamar and Bob Corker. " I

don't know if we're going to see huge increases in donation " of organs if

the medal program becomes law, Crippin said,

" but I would say even if it helps one person get through the process then

it's done some good. "

About

100,000 people on any given day are seeking organs for transplant, and an

average of 17 die daily (about 6,000 annually) while waiting, according to the

National Kidney Foundation. A majority await a kidney

- more than 70,000 at last count.

The

United Network for Organ Sharing, which matches organ donors and coordinates

transplants across the country, also is one of several organizations endorsing

the medal concept. The medal could be a

pleasant remembrance for many family members of " the good that came out of

the tragedy of losing their loved one, " said Anne Paschke of UNOS.

Before

his first election to the Senate in 1994, Frist in

1986 helped start the heart and lung transplant program at Vanderbilt

University Medical Center and later worked with others successfully to get organ donor

cards returned to the back of Tennessee driver's licenses.

In the

Senate, he helped pass a law to insert organ and tissue donor cards and

information in mail containing income tax refunds. He

and a Democrat, Sen. Dodd of Connecticut, were able to pass improvements in the national organ donor

program.

Frist

said in a written statement that he felt humbled that both Republicans and

Democrats are proposing to name the medal program after him. The

legislation directs the secretary of the treasury to design the medal's emblems

and inscriptions.

Barb in Texas - Together in the Fight, Whatever it Takes!

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