  
Committee approves organ donor legislation
Last Updated: 2001-02-28 15:30:55 EST (Reuters Health)
WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday re-entered last year's contentious fight over organ transplant policy. But this time the outcome was different, with the panel approving legislation that would authorize payment of transportation and other expenses for "living" organ donors and provide new grants for states to promote awareness of the need for organ donors.
The bill is actually a stripped-down version of the much more contentious measure that the House passed in 1999. That bill, which would also have overturned regulations issued by the Department of Health and Human Services requiring broader geographic sharing of organs, foundered in the Senate and never became law.
For the current bill, said Health Subcommittee Chairman Michael Bilirakis, R-Fla., "we went into that legislation and pulled out the noncontroversial areas."
Agreed Rep. Tom Barrett, D-Wisc., who helped negotiate the measure: "These are two solid steps that are quite noncontroversial. There is no hidden agenda here."
Specifically, the bill would authorize $5 million per year for grants to states, transplant centers, or organ procurement organizations to help pay transportation and subsistence living expenses for individuals who must travel in order to donate an organ.
The measure would also authorize $15 million for the first year, and unspecified amounts for 4 additional years, for grants to states for education, research, and outreach activities aimed at increasing organ donation.
The House is expected to vote on the measure as soon as next week.
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