Honor Our Living Donors Act

This bill, called the Honor Our Living Donors Act, makes it easier for living organ donors to get their travel and other costs covered when they donate. It removes rules that looked at the organ recipient’s income when deciding if a donor could be reimbursed, so a donor can be reimbursed no matter how much the recipient earns. Today, the program limits help if the recipient’s income is above 350% of the federal poverty guidelines; this bill would end that limit. It also says donors can be reimbursed even if the recipient could pay or might be expected to pay the donor’s expenses, and it confirms that reimbursement can cover incidental costs like travel related to donation .

The bill also requires a yearly check-up on funding. By December 31 each year, the health department must report whether the program had enough money to fully reimburse every donor, how many donors did not get fully paid back, and how much more funding would be needed to make everyone whole.

• Who is affected: Living organ donors and people who receive organ transplants.
• What changes: Removes income limits tied to the recipient, ends any expectation that recipients will cover donor costs, and requires clear annual reports on whether donors are fully reimbursed .
• When: The required report is due each year by December 31.