Frequently Asked Questions

If you are eligible, but not registered, the decision will be left to your family.

If you are 18 or older, your decision to be a donor is a first-person authorized advanced directive. 

The decision to become a registered organ donor is kept confidential by the national and state registries. Although the decision to become a registered organ donor is a very personal decision, we encourage people to talk with family and friends to make your wishes known. In the event that you become an organ donor and provide life-saving organs to someone in need -- your identity will be kept confidential and it will be up to your family to decide what information, if any, they want to share with the recipient.

Yes. If you are taken to a hospital after an injury or medical crisis, it is the doctor's or EMT’s utmost priority to save your life. They are not involved in the organ and tissue donation or transplantation process and do not know your donor status. Your status as a donor is not considered until every effort has been made to save your life.

Brain death occurs when a critically ill or injured patient loses blood flow to the brain and causes the brain to stop functioning. In this event, all functions of the brain stop and blood supply to the brain is lost. A person who is brain dead is legally confirmed as dead. Brain death is irreversible and there is nothing that can be done to heal it. No one has ever recovered from brain death. Some organ donors are people who suffer brain death, but their body is kept functioning by a ventilator that provides oxygen to the major organs.

Donation after Circulatory Death (DCD) – organs may be recovered immediately following cardiopulmonary death. In a hospital setting this sometimes occurs when a family makes end of life decisions.

Human tissue is a collection of cells working together. An example of human tissue that can be donated are tendons and nerves. Organs are also a collection of tissues that form together to perform a particular function. Your heart, kidneys and lungs are examples of organs that can be donated. There are a total of 8 organs and 8 types of tissue that can be donated.

Types of tissue donation
Types of organ donation 

Organs and tissue can be donated by people at the time of death. Some organs like kidneys or a portion of the liver can be provided by a living donor. Discover more about how organ donation works.

Patients are selected to receive an organ using a combination of donor and candidate medical data – including factors such as blood type, medical urgency and location. The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) powers the organ donation and transplantation system. Using a computerized network, candidates are then matched by criteria to ensure the best possible chance of long-term survival. This process is used across the nation.

Visit the Organ Procurement and Transplant Network for more.

A variety of factors are involved with ensuring organs and tissues are viable for donation, not just with a donor but also the recipient. Less than 1% of all deaths meet the specific medical criteria to be a donor, which is why choosing to be a registered donor is so important. Doing so gives hope to those patients on the waitlist.

Transplants can be successful regardless of the ethnicity of the donor and recipient. The chance of longer-term survival may be greater if the donor and recipient are closely matched in terms of their shared genetic background. It's especially important to consider becoming an organ donor if you belong to an ethnic minority as certain blood types are more prevalent in ethnic minority populations. Because matching blood type is usually necessary for transplants, the need for minority donor organs is especially high.

Learn more about Race, Ethnicity & Donation.

Anyone of any age or health condition can become an organ and tissue donor.

Yes. A person's sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression does NOT prevent that person from becoming an organ donor (deceased or living).

When it comes to waiting for an organ transplant, the system in place treats us as equals. Rich or famous individuals cannot and do not get priority on the national transplant waitlist. Factors such as blood type, body size, location, severity of illness, and length of time on the waitlist are used to determine the best candidate for an organ.

No. Purchasing and/or selling organs in the United States is illegal.

Organ and tissue donation does not affect the outward appearance of the donor’s body. An open-casket funeral is still an option.