2010 California Code
Health and Safety Code
Chapter 3.56. Altruistic Living Donor Registry Act

7152.  This chapter shall be known, and may be cited, as the
Altruistic Living Donor Registry Act of 2010.



7152.1.  (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
   (1) More than 20,000 Californians are currently waiting for a
lifesaving organ transplant, and over 17,000 of those individuals are
waiting for a kidney transplant. Based on the current trend in organ
donations, one in three of those waiting for a transplant will die.
In 2009, 5,874 Americans died while waiting for a transplant.
   (2) On a national level, the number of organ donors increased by 3
percent from the years 2008 to 2009, while the number of organ
donors in California decreased by 2 percent during this same time
period. In 2009, there were only 798 cadaveric donors and 734 living
donors in California.
   (3) A decrease in organ donors results in longer stays on the
national organ transplant waiting list and, consequently, more deaths
among those patients who are waiting.
   (4) The national organ transplant waiting list, which is
maintained by the United Network for Organ Sharing, is growing at the
rate of approximately 40,000 persons per year. A name is added to
this national database every 13 minutes.
   (5) Since 2005, more than six million Californians have registered
to donate their organs and tissue upon death.
   (6) However, no registry exists in California for those
individuals who wish to be an altruistic living organ donor.
   (b) The use of anatomical gifts, and the donation of organs for
the purpose of transplantation, are of great value to the citizens of
California and may save or prolong the life, or improve the health
of, extremely ill and dying individuals.
   (c) It is the intent of the Legislature to increase the number of
individuals who identify themselves as potential organ donors. It is
further the intent of the Legislature to establish a statewide
Altruistic Living Donor Registry to expedite the match between organ
donors and recipients and to encourage charitable contributions to
support the registry.



7152.2.  (a) The California organ procurement organizations
designated pursuant to Section 273 and following of Title 42 of the
United States Code, are hereby authorized to establish a
not-for-profit entity that shall be designated the Altruistic Living
Donor Registrar, which shall establish and maintain the Altruistic
Living Donor Registry. The registry shall contain information
regarding persons who have identified themselves as altruistic living
kidney donors. The donor registry shall be designed to promote and
assist live kidney donations, including donor chains, paired
exchanges, and nondirected donations. The registrar shall be
responsible for developing methods to increase the number of donors
who enroll in the registry.
   (b) The registrar shall make available to the federally designated
organ procurement organizations (OPOs) and transplant centers in
California information contained in the registry regarding potential
altruistic living donors. This information shall be used to expedite
a match between identified organ donors and potential recipients.
   (c) The registrar may receive voluntary contributions to support
the registry and its activities.
   (d) The registrar shall collect and make all of the following
information relating to altruistic kidney donations available to the
public:
   (1) The number of donors on the registry.
   (2) The changes in the number of donors on the registry.
   (3) The general characteristics of donors.
   (e) The registrar may also authorize the registry to include
persons who identify themselves as altruistic living donors of organs
and tissue other than kidneys to be added to the registry, upon a
finding by the Federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and
the United Network for Organ Sharing that the donation is generally
regarded as safe and without a significant risk of complications, and
would not adversely affect the health of the donor. Upon a finding
pursuant to this subdivision, the registrar shall notify the
appropriate policy committees of the Legislature.