New state law makes organ donor's wishes binding

By Dave Whaley

October 17, 2005

The Telegraph

A deceased person's wishes regarding organ donation will be binding in Illinois, beginning Jan. 1, which can only increase the number of available organs in the future.

House Bill 1077, signed into law by Gov. Rod Blagojevich in late June, ensures that family members can't reverse an organ donor's decision after his or her death. Illinois is the 43rd state to enact such legislation.

Dr. William Chapman, transplantation chief at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, has watched the progress of the Illinois First-Person Consent Organ/Tissue Donor Law closely. Chapman works with Mid-America Transplant Services, which coordinates organ and tissue donations in the St. Louis area, as well as Southern Illinois and a portion of Arkansas, to find organ donor matches for patients.

"This law says that if a person makes the active decision to become an organ donor, that decision becomes binding, and others should honor those wishes," Chapman said. "In other words, it really means something to sign your driver's license.

"A relative cannot decide after death that perhaps this isn't what you meant. Hopefully, this will mean fewer usable organs being discarded at a time when more and more people are in need of lifesaving transplants."

Forty percent of families say no to organ and tissue donation when approached for permission, according to Gift of Hope Organ and Tissue Donor Network, a procurement organization covering much of Illinois. Families also say no to donating organs and tissue 19 percent of the time, even when they are told that their loved one had joined the state's donor registry.

Gift of Hope estimates that this law could save at least 100 additional lives each year.

"There are probably many reasons why this has occurred in the past, but most likely it's because one of the relatives wondered if the organ donor really meant to be a donor when they signed their license," Chapman said. "The most common reason for not wanting a relative or loved one to be a donor is the concern that "they've already suffered enough."

"Of course, the donor is treated like any standard surgery patient. In addition, organ donation surgery is only done in people who are already dead. So, from this standpoint, the issue about suffering isn't a real one."

Through the first-person consent law, an individual who enrolls in the Illinois Organ/Tissue Donor Registry has documented his or her legal decision to be an organ or tissue donor after death.

Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White will create a new donor registry by Jan. 1. To become an organ and tissue donor, Illinois residents will be able to join the new registry at any Secretary of State driver's license facility or by enrolling online (www.lifegoeson.com), by telephone at (800) 210-2106 or by mail (Secretary of State, Organ/Tissue Donor Program, 2701 S. Dirksen Parkway, Springfield, IL 62723). Inclusion on this list is not automatic if people are already on a registry.

"Although six million people in Illinois have joined our organ and tissue donor registry, their wishes are sometimes not carried through," White said. "This measure will make a person's decision to donate organs and tissue binding under state law. It will also make more lifesaving organs available for transplant each year."

Illinois has the largest donor registry in the country, but approximately 300 people in the state die each year while waiting for transplants.

"It's definitely important for everyone in Illinois to give careful consideration to signing their driver's license," Chapman said. "This is also important in Missouri, even though we don't have enacted legislation at this time. In addition, everyone should let their families and loved ones know that they've signed up, so there are no doubts about intentions and desires."

Copyright © 2005 The Telegraph.

This article posted October 31, 2005.