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Berlin – In order to reduce the organ shortage in Germany, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) wants to make living kidney donation easier. According to a draft of a third law amending the Transplant Act, kidney donations should also be possible in future between two different couples, so-called living cross-donation. The amendment to living organ donation was decided by the Federal Cabinet yesterday.
However, this planned change is expressly independent of a possible new regulation of organ donation in Germany. “Dying on the waiting list has to end. In the long term, we therefore need a contradictory solution,” said Lauterbach. In the short term, more organ donations could be made possible in this way.
As a result of the planned change in the law, the “close relationship” previously required for the so-called cross-life donation will no longer apply in the future. This significantly expands the circle of recipients. “This cross-donation will significantly improve the care of people who have been waiting a long time for an organ on dialysis,” the minister said.
To date, living organ donation in Germany has been subject to strict requirements, as it does not represent a curative procedure for healthy donors and is associated with risks. Donors must be of legal age, capable of giving consent and have a particularly personal relationship with the recipient. The main aim of this was to prevent organ trading.
The amendment also emphasizes the latter, albeit with different means: if a cross-donation takes place in the future without a close relationship, it must, according to the draft, take place anonymously and be organized by transplant centers. The placement of kidneys must be carried out exclusively according to medical criteria and in anonymity. The purpose of anonymity is to prevent money from being paid for an organ.
In addition, a national program for the mediation and implementation of cross-donation of living kidneys will be established. A center for the provision of kidneys as part of cross-donation of living kidneys will also be established. The empowerment of Federal Medical Association to determine the status of medical science discoveries in the guidelines should be expanded by the new regulations.
Donor protection should also be strengthened. To this end, regulations to clarify and specify donor suitability should be expanded. Psychosocial counselling and assessment should be mandatory.
The independence of an “expert” is intended to ensure that advice and assessment are not influenced by those responsible for transplant medicine at the transplant center.
In future, the qualification requirements are to be defined in the guidelines of the German Medical Association. Furthermore, all donors must be individually supported by a living donor companion.
The amendment approved yesterday in the cabinet meets a long-standing demand of the German Medical Association. Three years ago, the majority voted in favor of expanding the donor circle for living organ donation. From the point of view of the Medical Parliament, living cross-donation – as is already permitted in other countries – should also be possible in Germany. © ER/bee/nfs/aerzteblatt.de