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Thursday, January 16, 2003 Press Release SOURCE: LifeSharers Parents Are Improving Transplant Odds for Their ChildrenLifeSharers Offers Kids a Chance to Move Up the Organ Waiting List NASHVILLE, Tenn. – January 16, 2003 – Half of all Americans who need an organ transplant die before they get one. Parents are improving those odds for their children thanks to LifeSharers, an innovative new approach to recruiting organ donors. “Most people will never need an organ, but most parents want to give their children every possible chance to get one if they ever need one,” says David J. Undis, Executive Director of LifeSharers. LifeSharers is a non-profit network that gives members preferred access each others’ organs, to create an incentive for others to sign up as organ donors. LifeSharers members agree to donate their organs and tissue when they die. Uniquely, they direct their donations first to their fellow members. Non-members can have a member’s organs if no member who is a suitable match for them wants them. By creating a pool of organs available first to members, LifeSharers members create an incentive for non-members to become donors and join the network. This incentive, which will become more powerful as membership in LifeSharers expands, is the key to reducing the organ shortage and saving lives. By enrolling their children in LifeSharers, parents give them preferred access to the organs of other LifeSharers members. The advantage of being a LifeSharers member grows as the number of members increases. “When we have 100,000 members, most parents will want their children to be members. If they’re not members, they won’t have preferred access to 200,000 kidneys, 100,000 hearts, 100,000 livers, 200,000 lungs, 200,000 corneas, and more,” notes Mr. Undis. Since its launch on May 22, 2002, LifeSharers has attracted 345 members in 34 states and the District of Columbia. Of those members, 41 are minor children signed up by a parent or legal guardian. According to Mr. Undis, “the success we’ve enjoyed in our first eight months of operation shows that LifeSharers has the potential to put a serious dent in the shortage of human organs.” Membership in LifeSharers is free. Anyone can join at http://www.lifesharers.org. Parents can sign up their minor children after enrolling themselves. LifeSharers is not the first program that offers preferred access in exchange for organ donation. Under the “Hope Through Sharing” program launched by the New England Medical Center, a person moves up the national waiting list when a live relative donates a kidney. The program’s success to date shows the power of incentives to increase the supply of organs. The organ shortage will kill over 6,000 people in America this year, and it is getting worse every day. According to statistics compiled by the United Network for Organ Sharing, over 80,000 Americans are now on their waiting list for an organ transplant, and another name is added to the list every 14 minutes. Somebody on the waiting list dies about every 90 minutes. About LifeSharers LifeSharers is a non-profit network of organ and tissue donors. Members agree to donate their organs when they die. They direct their donation first to other members of the LifeSharers network. By directing their gifts in this way, LifeSharers members create an incentive for others to donate their organs and join the network. LifeSharers was launched on May 22, 2002. The LifeSharers web site is at http://www.lifesharers.org. Contact:
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