Removing Burdens From Organ Donation Act

This bill aims to speed up organ donation. It would require hospitals that take part in Medicare or Medicaid to automatically alert their local organ procurement agency and give it secure, remote access to a potential donor’s medical records when the records show the patient has died or is near death. This starts two years after the law takes effect.

Hospitals can get temporary exemptions if meeting the tech requirements would be a hardship (for example, in rural areas with poor internet). They would also get a one‑year exemption if hit by a cyberattack or disaster, with possible extensions. The federal government must report each year on how many exemptions were given and why .

• Who is affected: Hospitals in Medicare/Medicaid, organ procurement agencies, electronic health record companies, and organ donors and their families.
• What changes: Automated alerts to organ agencies and remote record access; federal guidance within one year to help hospitals, organ agencies, and EHR companies follow the new rules; guidance to states on how to explain these changes to donors and families .
• Oversight: A federal study will review costs, rural broadband challenges, data security issues, and transplant results, with a report to Congress within three years and recommendations for next steps.
• When: Main requirements begin two years after enactment; guidance is due within one year; the study report is due within three years; exemption reporting begins within two years and continues annually .