Organ Procurement Organizations, or OPOs, are non-profit agencies responsible for:

• approaching families about the option of donation when they have lost a loved one
• evaluating the medical suitability of potential donors
• coordinating the recovery, preservation, and transportation of organs donated for transplantation
• educating the public about the critical need for organ donation

OPOs operate in designated service areas; these service areas may cover whole states or just parts of a state.

When organs are donated in an OPO's service area, that OPO typically attempts first to match them with local recipients. If no matches are made locally, the organs are then offered to recipients throughout the country through the UNOS database.