HIV Medicine Association Policy Statement: Federal Law Should Allow Clinical Research on the Safety and Effectiveness of HIV-Infected-to-HIV-Infected Organ Transplantation

Federal Law Should Allow Clinical Research on the Safety and Effectiveness of HIV-Infected-to-HIV-Infected Organ Transplantation:  A change in policy is necessary to support medical progress and allow for research to fully evaluate HIV-infected organ donation to patients with HIV. Regulation of organ donation for all diseases with the exception of HIV resides appropriately with the
Department of Health and Human Services, which has the medical expertise to regulate, monitor and
maintain organ donation policies according to the latest available research findings. The legal ban on
HIV-infected organ donation took effect in 1984 with the Federal National Organ Transplant Act of 1984
(42 U.S.C. § 274). Despite the significant progress made in understanding the etiology of HIV infection
and its transmission over the past 30 years, HIV infection continues to be the only condition that
automatically precludes the use of organs from HIV-infected deceased individuals by federal statute
thereby prohibiting even the possibility of investigational studies involving such organs. Read the full statement