On March 4, Bloomberg Government published a story based on a leaked letter from Sens. Chuck Grassley and Ron Wyden to the Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA). The letter alleges that UNOS “deleted or modified OPTN member records” related to “member activity and patient safety.”

UNOS is setting the record straight

To be clear, UNOS did not delete any OPTN records. No files or data required by our contract with HRSA to serve the OPTN are missing, and none have been modified.

UNOS took the extraordinary measure earlier this year of providing HRSA direct access to internal operational support materials that HRSA requested, despite UNOS having no contractual obligation to provide them to HRSA. UNOS took this unusual step to demonstrate its commitment to being a good partner to HRSA.

It is deeply troubling that members of HRSA’s staff would provide Congress with incomplete and inaccurate information about our work to support OPTN modernization, which has the effect of discrediting UNOS. Meanwhile, UNOS has gone above and beyond its contractual obligations to support HRSA because we are a mission-driven organization that has advocated for patients for more than four decades. UNOS has been transparent and collaborative in all of its dealings with HRSA.

UNOS is committed to working constructively with HRSA to benefit the OPTN and to advocate for reforms that will improve our nation’s donation and transplant system.

Today, the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) celebrated the passage of the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education funding bill for Fiscal Year 2026. The report accompanying the bill includes directives that advance every element of UNOS’ advocacy agenda. These four critical reforms will strengthen organ donation and transplantation across the country and help save more lives.

“It’s critical that every patient gets the transplant they need, which is why we have been working with community partners to push for these critical improvements that will help save lives. These efficient and common-sense reforms will strengthen the organ donation and transplant system,” said UNOS Interim CEO Mark Johnson. “We thank the U.S. Senate and House leaders, U.S. Sens. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and U.S. Reps. Robert Aderholt (R-AL) and Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), for championing the inclusion of these policies to strengthen our nation’s system for patients.”

The report accompanying the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2026 directs the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to act on several critical improvements to the system that will make organ donation and transplant more effective for patients and their families. Specifically:

• Directs HHS to develop a report on automated deceased donor referral software tools. These tools are a critical step towards efficiently identifying and referring every potential organ donor, ultimately increasing lives saved through organ transplantation.
• Supports the adoption of real-time organ tracking during transit. Tracking technologies will improve transparency in organ transportation nationwide and ensure that precious donated organs reach recipients swiftly and securely.
• Urges HRSA to implement the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Organ Transportation Working Group recommendations. The Working Group recommendations are essential to ensure the timely and safe delivery of organs by commercial airlines, reducing logistical barriers and improving coordination among all stakeholders involved in organ delivery.
• Aids the transplantation of medically complex kidneys. Requires HRSA to submit a report to Congress outlining strategies to ensure performance metrics do not penalize hospitals for accepting complex kidney transplants, offering hope to thousands of patients awaiting transplant.

For more information on how UNOS is working with Congress to strengthen the organ donation and transplant system, visit unos.org/advocacy.

About UNOS

The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) is a nonprofit organization that serves the organ donation and transplant system and broader public health community through its work developing new technologies and initiatives, conducting data-driven research and analysis, providing expert consulting services, advocating for patients, and being a leader in bringing communities together to save lives.

The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) strongly supports the important steps outlined in the proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), which advances two critical reforms we have long championed: modernizing donor referral with electronic referrals from the donor hospital to the OPO and improving the tracking of donated organs in transit to transplant hospitals. Automated Deceased Donor Referral (ADR) and organ transportation have been key pillars of UNOS’ agenda in recent years, and we are confident that CMS implementing these two proposals will improve the system for patients.

ADR has already shown transformative potential, in one small study increasing donor referrals by 333%, and every additional donor can save up to eight lives. These are the kinds of significant improvements that patients deserve.

Every donated organ is a gift of life, and should not be lost, delayed in transit or damaged. The proposed requirement for organ procurement organizations (OPOs) to report transportation-related adverse events brings long-needed transparency and accountability to the process, paving the way for nationwide improvements and reinforcing the urgency of establishing a real-time national organ tracking system.

With more than 108,000 people awaiting transplant in the United States, every step forward counts. We need momentum and urgency. These bold, practical actions from CMS represent meaningful progress for patients, families, the organ donation and transplant community, and all Americans.

Read more about UNOS’ proposed reforms and advocacy work.