Plans to change the rules on organ donation consent in England are set to clear the final hurdle in Parliament. The legislation will be known as Max and Keira’s law after a boy who received a heart transplant and the girl who donated it.
Under the new system, which comes into force next year, consent will be presumed unless people have opted out. Currently there is an opt-in scheme. Presumed consent has been operating in Wales since December 2015. Organ donation consent rate in Wales are now the highest in the UK at 75%. A voluntary opt-in system still exists in Northern Ireland while the Scottish Parliament is to consider this week about its own opt-out scheme. Government ministers argue the change in the rules in England could save up to 700 lives a year by increasing the number of organs available
Keira, from Devon, was nine when she was involved in a car accident with her mum and brother. Her father Joe was approached by the organ donor consent team after doctors in Bristol confirmed they could not save her life. Keira’s organs saved four lives including Max who was in hospital in Newcastle with heart failure following a viral infection. He was been kept alive with a mechanical pump. He was given Keira’s heart and Max, now 11, is recovered although the anti-rejection drugs he must take every day sometimes make him poorly. Max’s story urged the prime minister to pledge to introduce presumed consent for organ donation in England.
There are currently around 6,000 people on the transplant waiting list in the UK and last year more than 400 patients died while waiting for a suitable organ. Under the new system people will be encouraged to register their consent for organ donation, or to opt out.
Lord Hunt, who told the BBC he was “absolutely delighted” the Bill was on course to pass into law, adding: “I am convinced that as a result, many more organs will be donated and lives saved as a consequence.”
Organs that can be donated are:
- Heart
- Kidney
- Lungs
- Liver
- Pancreas
- Small bowel
- Tissues such as corneas, heart valves, skin and bone.
