FRANKFORT, Ky. — Lawmakers are taking additional steps to protect organ donors.
Under House Bill 510, medical teams must stop an organ donation procedure immediately if they detect any signs of life, reinforcing what is already considered standard medical practice.
What You Need To Know
House Bill 510 would require organ donation procedures to pause if anyone involved believes there are signs of life
Doctors would have to reassess the patient’s neurological and physical condition before resuming any organ recovery
The bill was prompted by a 2021 case in which a Kentucky man was found alive on an operating table before organ recovery began
HB 510 passed unanimously out of committee and now moves to the full Senate for consideration
Lawmakers are pushing for these safeguards after a Kentucky man was discovered alive on an operating table as organ preservationists entered to begin the procedure.
Bill sponsor Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Middletown, said the measure prioritizes patients.
“If anybody who’s involved in the team that is extracting the organ to be donated thinks that there might be signs of life, they just hit the pause button, and then we re-evaluate the person to make sure that everything is OK,” said Nemes.
The case that prompted the legislation occurred in 2021 at Baptist Health in Richmond. Medical staff found the organ donor alive on the operating table, canceled the procedure and launched an investigation through the Attorney General’s Office.
Under the proposed law, doctors, nurses, organ procurement staff or even the patient’s family could request a pause.
During that pause, doctors would reassess the patient’s neurological and physical condition. The organ recovery process would resume only if death is reconfirmed.
Nemes emphasized that the bill is not intended to discourage organ donation.
“The process is very safe. What we’re doing here is we’re making sure that we put protocols in place to ensure safety, so everybody feels very comfortable about being an organ donor, which is what we want to encourage,” he said.
HB 510 passed unanimously out of committee Thursday and now advances to the full Senate.
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