A bill that institutes an additional safety step during the organ procurement process achieved final passage in the Kentucky Senate.
House Bill 510 would allow a “pause in procedure” during organ donation. The pause can be initiated if there is uncertainty about the accuracy of death declaration assessments or if any change in neurological status or indication of life in a patient is reported during any organ donation recovery, preservation or procurement activity.
House Majority Whip Jason Nemes, R-Middletown, sponsored the measure.
Nemes testified in a House committee meeting in February that HB 510 aims to ensure death is appropriately determined and maintain safe, ethical organ donations in Kentucky.
“What this bill does is it allows anybody in the organ donation process, if they think that there’s indications of life, to cause a pause in the procedure in which case the whole process will begin over again,” Nemes said on the House floor on Feb. 25. “We believe in organ donation strongly in Kentucky and we try to support it. This is just a way to make sure we are making it more secure.”
“House Bill 510 provides clarity and confidence for families and organ donors during some of their most difficult moments,” said Addia Wuchner, executive director of Kentucky Right to Life. HB 510 was priority legislation for the pro-life organization.
“These protections help ensure that the gift of organ donation is carried out with the utmost care, respect, and integrity,” Wuchner said.
HB 510 passed the Senate unanimously as part of the Consent Orders of the Day on March 25. It has been delivered to Gov. Andy Beshear’s desk.
(Photo: House Majority Whip Jason Nemes, courtesy of the Legislative Research Commission via Kentucky Today)
By Tessa Redmond, Kentucky Today
