Are You Registered? Organ Donors Are Needed Now More Than Ever

ABC 13 reports that the need for healthy organs from organ donors has increased dramatically over the years. In 2016, the list of those who were in need of an organ transplant reached an all-time high, and in the same year, 33,000 transplants were performed in America. “In the last five years alone, the United Network for Organ Sharing said transplants have increased by nearly 20 percent,” the news explains.

OrganDonor.gov states that over 116,000 Americans were on “…the national transplant waiting list as of August 2017,” and every 10 minutes, someone else gets added on to the ever-growing list. Sadly, a worrying statistic states that 20 people pass away every day while waiting for the opportunity to have a transplant.

So what can be done? OrganDonor.gov writes that while 95 percent of Americans say they support the idea of organ transplants, only 54 percent of people are signed up to be organ donors. It’s easy to sign up to be an organ donor, and the process can even be completed online (here) or at the DMV when getting your license renewed. Even older adults and people with health conditions can still provide a life-saving opportunity for someone on the organ transplant list.