Senators Gillibrand and Cotton Reintroduce Living Donor Protection Act

The Living Donor Protection Act was reintroduced in the U.S. Senate on May 1, 2025 by Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Tom Cotton (R-AR). The bill (S.1552) is aimed at removing barriers to living organ donation. Representatives Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Don Bacon (R-NE) are expected to introduce legislation in the House shortly.

“It’s a tragedy that so many people die while waiting for life-saving organ donations. We must do more to remove the barriers that keep Americans from donating,” Senator Gillibrand said in a news release. “The Living Donor Protection Act would help ensure that the individuals who are willing to save someone’s life through an organ donation can do so without worrying that they’ll face insurance discrimination or that they could lose their job as they recover. I am proud to be introducing this bipartisan legislation and will keep fighting to finally get it passed.”

Nationally, up to 11% of living organ donors have difficulty getting or affording insurance after their procedures, according to a 2007 study. The American Society of Transplantation notes that the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) does not specify that living organ donors can take unpaid leave to recover from their donation and does not guarantee that donors will have a job waiting for them after surgery.

The Living Donor Protection Act would::

• Prohibit life, disability, and long-term care insurance companies from denying or limiting coverage and from charging higher premiums for living organ donors.

• Amend the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to specifically include living organ donation as a serious health condition for private and civil service employees.

• Direct the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to update its materials on live organ donation to reflect the new protections and encourage more individuals to consider donating an organ.

Organizations supporting the Living Donor Protection Act include: the American Association of Kidney Patients, American Council of Life Insurers, American Heart Association, American Kidney Fund, American Liver Foundation, American Nephrology Nurses Association, American Society of Nephrology, American Society of Pediatric Nephrology, American Society of Transplant Surgeons, American Society of Transplantation, Dialysis Patient Citizens, Global Liver Institute, IGA Nephropathy Foundation, International Society of Glomerular Disease, Kidney Transplant Collaborative, National Kidney Foundation, the Nonprofit Kidney Care Alliance (NKCA), North American Transplant Coordinators Organization, the PKD Foundation, the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), Transplant Recipients International Organization (TRIO), and the Renal Physicians Association.