The Union health ministry on 16th February modified national organ transplantation guidelines to allow even those above 65 years of age to register to receive an organ for transplantation from deceased donors.
Key points
- The government has decided to do away with a clause in the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) guidelines as the clause violates the Right to Life.
- Earlier an organ recipient could register for a prospective transplant in domicile State. The Government of India has decided to do away with the domicile policy and all States have been intimated about this decision. A patient irrespective of domicile State can register in any other State for a transplant.
- The patient will be allotted a unique ID by NOTTO on registering which will get carried forward even if the patient changes multiple hospitals in different States. Apart from this, certain States like Kerala and Maharashtra have been charging fees ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 for registering organ transplant patients.
- The Health Ministry has intimated States to stop charging registration fees from patients.
- The Health Ministry is charting a ‘One Nation One Policy,’ for organ donation and transplantation.
- According to the Union Health Ministry, the number of organ transplants have increased by over three times from 4,990 in 2013 to 15,561 in 2022. Of the 15,561 transplants, a majority — 12,791 (82%) — are from live donors and 2,765 (18%) are from cadavers. Up to 11,423 of the 15,561 organ transplants are for the kidney, followed by liver (766), heart (250), lung (138), pancreas (24) and small bowel transplants (3).
