[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 6] [Extensions of Remarks] [Page 8382] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov][[Page 8382]] ORGAN DONATION ______ HON. ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS of maryland in the house of representatives Tuesday, May 4, 1999 Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, recently, we celebrated National Organ and Tissue Donor Awareness Week and today I recognize the medical advances that have made organ transplantation a viable treatment option. Thanks to those who have given the gift of life, more than 20,000 individuals received an organ transplant in 1996. However, each year, the number of organs donated in the United States falls tragically short of the need. Sadly, more than 55,000 people are on the national organ transplant waiting list and about 10 will die each day as the waiting lists continue to grow. Organ donation is increasing, but not fast enough to come close to meeting the need. In recent years, progress has been made in creating awareness of the need for organ donation. Most Americans indicate they support organ donation. Nonetheless, only about 50 percent of families asked to donate a loved one's organs agree to do so. Moreover, thousands of opportunities to donate are missed each year, either because families do not know what their loved ones wanted, or because potential donors are not identified for organ procurement organizations and their families are never asked. To address these barriers to donation, government and private sector partnerships must be focused on * * * * * * that we from government and the private sector. But most importantly, we need volunteers willing to share the gift of life. To achieve this goal, there must be an emphasis on increasing consent to donation and referrals to organ procurement organizations. However, we must also ensure that our social and work environments are amenable to persons serving as donors. That is why I urge support of my legislation H.R. 457, the Organ Donor Leave Act, which would provide federal employees an additional 7 days to serve as a bone- marrow donor, and 30 days to serve as an organ donor. Passage of this measure would stand as a model for private employees to amend their personnel policies to grant additional paid leave to living donors who give bone marrow, a kidney, or other organs. Without donors, transplant surgeons cannot save even one life. With just one donor, they can save and improve as many as 50 lives. I believe that we must all pledge to join the national community of organ and tissue sharing by closing the gap between donated organs and tissue and the people who need them. With this commitment, we pave the way for our nation to be able to answer the hopes and needs of those who now wait too long for a second chance at life. I urge support of H.R. 457 and challenge all Americans to say ``yes'' to organ and tissue donation. ____________________