Last week, the Senate approved legislation that will provide a boost in funding to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). Sponsored by U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND), the $5 million increase will save lives through organ transplants.
 
The OPTN is the unified transplant network established by the United States Congress under the National Organ Transplant Act (NOTA) of 1984. Its goals are to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of organ sharing and equity in the national system of organ allocation, and to increase the supply of donated organs available for transplantation. 

This article originally appeared in the October 2008 issue of Kidney Transplant Today.