Special Election

Per the HRSA OPTN Board of Directors Designation Agreement, the Secretary of Health and Human Services held a special election for the OPTN Board of Directors in two phases, including (1) an election for the 11 Regional Councillors, held from May 2, 2025, through May 6, 2025; and (2) a national election for the remaining Board seats, held from May 23, 2025, through June 2, 2025. OPTN voting members elected a new 34-member Board of Directors for the OPTN.

OPTN Runoff Election and Election of Board Officers

Following the conclusion of the national election, a tie occurred in the races for (1) the third Organ Procurement Organization (OPO) Representative on the OPTN Board of Directors and (2) the Associate Regional Councillor for Region 8. To resolve these ties, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is conducting a runoff election for both positions. Voting will be open between Friday June 20, 2025, at 9 a.m. ET until Thursday June 26, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. ET.

In addition to the runoff election, the ballot will include a slate for the election of all Board officers (president, vice president, vice president of patient and donor affairs, treasurer, and secretary). The candidates for Board officers will be members of the newly elected Board of Directors. For more information, read FAQs: Electing OPTN Board Officers

Voting representatives for each member organization, as well as individual members with voting privileges, will be emailed instructions and their ballot on June 20, 2025.

Personal statements for runoff and officer nominees are available for review here:
2025 OPTN Runoff Election Candidate Biographical and Personal Statements
2025 OPTN Board of Directors Officer Interest Statements

Runoff Election

Eligible Voters: All OPTN voting members
Position	Nominees
Organ Procurement Organization Representative (vote for one)	Brett Gordon, BS, President and Chief Executive Officer, Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency Darren Lahrman, MBA, CPTC, BSRC, Executive Director, LifeLink of Florida
Eligible Voters: Region 8 members who did not vote in the first election
Position	Nominees
Region 8 Associate Regional Councillor (CO, IA, KS, MO, NE, WY) (vote for one)	Ryan Fischer, MD, Section Chief of Hepatology and Transplant Medicine, Children’s Mercy Kansas City Anthony Panos, MD, MSc, Professor of Surgery and Director of Heart Transplant and Mechanical Circulatory Support Programs, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics

Board of Director Officer Positions

Eligible Voters: All OPTN Voting Members
Board Officer Position	Nominees
President (vote for one)	Ryan Davies, MD, Clinical Director of Pediatric Heart Transplantation and Mechanical Circulatory Support, and Interim Chief of Pediatric Solid Organ Transplantation, UT Southwestern Medical Center/Children’s Medical Center John C. Magee, MD, Attending Surgeon, Division of Transplantation, Jeremiah & Claire Turcotte Professor of Transplantation Surgery, University of Michigan Health Systems
Vice President (vote for one)	George Bayliss, MD, Medical Director, Division of Transplantation, Rhode Island Hospital, and Associate Professor of Medicine, Brown University Shelley Hall, MD, Chief of Transplant Cardiology, Congestive Heart Failure and Mechanical Circulatory Support, Baylor University Medical Center
Vice President of Patient Donor Affairs (vote for one)	William (Bill) Ryan, MBA, Founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Transplant Life Foundation; Family Member of a Deceased Donor John J. Sperzel III, BS, Previously Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, T2 Biosystems, Inc.; Heart Transplant Recipient
Treasurer (vote for one)	Joshua Gossett, DNP, MBA, RN, FACHE, Director of the Pediatric Transplant Center, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford Alan Reed, MD, MBA, FACS, Professor and Chief of Transplant and HPB Surgery, Iowa Carver College, Director, Iowa Health Care Organ Transplant Center, and Adjunct Professor of Accounting, Henry B. Tippie School of Management, University of Iowa
Secretary (vote for one)	Meelie DebRoy, MD, Section Chief, Kidney Transplant, Department of Surgery, Westchester Medical Center Justin Wilkerson, MBA, Deputy Director of Human Services, Illinois Army National Guard; Liver Transplant Recipient

2025 OPTN Board of Directors

2025 Board of Directors: Personal Statements

Transplant Physician and Surgeon Representatives
Alan Reed, MD, MBA, FACS, Professor and Chief of Transplant and HPB Surgery, Iowa Carver College, Director, Iowa Health Care Organ Transplant Center, and Adjunct Professor of Accounting, Henry B. Tippie School of Management, University of Iowa Dan Meyer, MD, Chief of Heart Transplantation and Mechanical Circulatory Support, Chair of Cardiovascular Surgery, and Chief of Cardiac Transplantation and Advanced Cardiac Circulatory Support, Baylor Scott and White Health – Dallas Shelley Hall, MD, Chief of Transplant Cardiology, Congestive Heart Failure and Mechanical Circulatory Support, Baylor University Medical Center Kymberly D. Watt, MD, Medical Director of Liver Transplantation Program, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, and Professor of Medicine, Mayo Clinic George Bayliss, MD, Medical Director, Division of Transplantation, Rhode Island Hospital, and Associate Professor of Medicine, Brown University Joseph Magliocca, MD, Professor of Surgery and Pediatrics, Executive Director of the Vanderbilt Transplant Center, and Surgical Director of Pediatric Liver Transplantation, Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Patient, Donor, and Family Member Representatives
John J. Sperzel III, BS, previously Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, T2 Biosystems, Inc. Gitthaline (Candie) Gagne, USN, HM1 (Ret.), previously Level 3 Surgical Technologist, UPMC McKeesport and Retired U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsman Justin Wilkerson, MBA, Deputy Director of Human Services, Illinois Army National Guard Peter Nicastro, MS, MBA, previously Finance Director, Cigna Jen Benson, BA, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of The Transplant Journey Inc. and The Transplant Collective, and Operations Manager, R.L. Bension & Associates, Inc. James Cason, MA, previously Mayor of Coral Gables, FL, and former U.S. Foreign Service Officer Cody Reynolds, father of a Pediatric Transplant Recipient John Hodges, MA, previously Faculty Research Assistant, Center for Remote Sensing, Department of Geography, Boston University William (Bill) Ryan, MBA, Founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Transplant Life Foundation
Organ Procurement Organization Representatives
Samantha Endicott, MPH, CPTC, Senior Director, Organ Optimization, New England Donor Services Kevin Lee, MPA, President and Chief Executive Officer, Mid-America Transplant Note: The third seat resulted in a tie, therefore a run-off election will be held.
Transplant Hospital Representative
Joshua Gossett, DNP, MBA, RN, FACHE, Director of the Pediatric Transplant Center, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford
Voluntary Health Association Representative
Annette Needham, DNP, NP-C, NEA-BC, CCTC, Transplant Quality Manager, UC Davis Transplant Center; and Secretary, NATCO Board of Directors
Histocompatibility Representative
Cathi Murphey, PhD, MS, Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics Laboratory Director, Southwest Immunodiagnostics, Inc.
Non-Transplant Professional Representatives
Jerold Mande, MPH, Chief Executive Officer of Nourish Science, Adjunct Professor of Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Tisch College of Civic Life, Tufts University; guided the development of the original National Organ Transplant Act (NOTA) as a legislative assistant in the U.S. House and Senate Mary E. Homan, DrPH, MA, MSHCE, Mountain Region Vice President of Theology and Ethics, CommonSpirit Health
Regional Councillors
Region 1 Councillor: Nahel Elias, MD, Medical Director for Quality, Division of Transplantation, Massachusetts General Hospital Region 2 Councillor: Kenneth Chavin, MD, MBA, PhD, Director of Abdominal Organ Transplant, Temple University Health System Region 3 Councillor: Ari Cohen, MD, MBA, Director, Ochsner Transplant Institute, and Director of Transplant Research and Surgical Director, Liver Transplant Section, Ochsner Health System Region 4 Councillor: Ryan Davies, MD, Clinical Director of Pediatric Heart Transplantation and Mechanical Circulatory Support, and Interim Chief of Pediatric Solid Organ Transplantation, UT Southwestern Medical Center/Children’s Medical Center Region 5 Councillor: Andrew M. Courtwright, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine, Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, and Adjunct Associate Professor of Philosophy, University of Utah Region 6 Councillor: Gina-Marie Barletta, MD, Medical Director, Pediatric Kidney Transplantation, and Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Nephrology, Oregon Health & Science University Region 7 Councillor: Reynold Lopez-Soler, MD, PhD, Professor of Surgery, Division of Transplant, Loyola University Medical Center, and Section Chief of Renal Transplant, Edward Hines Jr. VA Medical Center Region 8 Councillor: Mark Wakefield, MD, Director and Primary Surgeon of Renal Transplant Program, University of Missouri Health Care Region 9 Councillor: Meelie DebRoy, MD, Section Chief, Kidney Transplant, Department of Surgery, Westchester Medical Center Region 10 Councillor: John C. Magee, MD, Attending Surgeon, Division of Transplantation, Jeremiah & Claire Turcotte Professor of Transplantation Surgery, University of Michigan Health Systems Region 11 Councillor: Vincent Casingal, MD, Chief, Division of Abdominal Transplant, and Surgical Director, Adult and Pediatric Kidney Transplant, Atrium Health-Carolinas Medical Center

Associate Regional Councillors
Associate Region 1 Councillor: Michael F. Daily, MD, MS, FACS, Section Chief of Transplant and Surgical Director, Solid Organ Transplantation Surgery, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center Associate Region 2 Councillor: Michael Marvin, MD, FACS, Professor of Surgery and Chair, Department of Transplantation and Liver Surgery, Geisinger Medical Center Associate Region 3 Councillor: Kenneth Newell, MD, PhD, Professor of Surgery, Division of Transplantation, and Vice Chair for Academic Affairs, Emory University School of Medicine Associate Region 4 Councillor: Brad Adams, JD, President and Chief Executive Officer, Southwest Transplant Alliance Associate Region 5 Councillor: Abbas Ardehali, MD, MPH, FACS, Professor of Surgery in the Division of Cardiac Surgery, Vice Chair of Transplantation, William E. Connor Chair in Cardiothoracic Transplantation, and Director of Heart, Lung, & Heart-Lung Transplant Programs, UCLA Medical Center Associate Region 6 Councillor: Kevin Koomalsingh, MD, Surgical Director, Heart Transplantation and Mechanical Circulatory Support, Providence St. Vincent’s Medical Center Associate Region 7 Councillor: Paul A. Stahler III, MD, FACS, Surgical Director, Kidney Transplant Program, Hennepin County Medical Center Associate Region 8 Councillor: This seat resulted in a tie, therefore a run-off election will be held. Associate Region 9 Councillor: Niraj M. Desai, MD, Director, Center for Kidney and Pancreas Transplantation, North Shore University Hospital Associate Region 10 Councillor: Austin Schenk, MD, PhD, FACS, Quality and Patient Safety Officer, Comprehensive Transplant Center, and Associate Professor of Surgery, Division of Transplantation Surgery, Ohio State University Associate Region 11 Councillor: David Bruno, MD, FACS, Director of Transplant Service Line and Chair of Division of Transplant, Hume-Lee Transplant Center, Virginia Commonwealth University

Learn more about the special election

The application period was open from March 3, 2025, through April 4, 2025, and select applicants are being invited to participate in interviews on a rolling basis. The TNC received a total of 300 applications, including:

182 (61%) organ transplant professionals (e.g., transplant surgeons; transplant physicians; and representatives of organ procurement organizations, transplant hospitals, voluntary health organizations, transplant coordinators, and non-physician transplant professionals);
46 (15%) individuals with lived transplant experience (i.e., transplant candidates, transplant recipients, organ donors, family members of transplant recipient, family members of deceased donor);
27 (9%) non-transplant professionals (e.g., professionals from law, theology, ethics, health care, public health, social and behavioral sciences, and labor and management unrelated to health care).
20 (7%) organ transplant professionals with lived organ transplant experience;
15 (5%) non-transplant professionals with lived experience; and
10 (3%) individuals who are organ transplant and non-transplant professionals.

The OPTN Board is the governing body that oversees and participates in policy development for OPTN operations. The Board is responsible for oversight of organ allocation policies, OPTN membership criteria, and OPTN management and membership policies. All Board Directors must adhere to the OPTN Code of Conduct.

Serving as a Director on the OPTN Board requires at least 12 hours time commitment per month. Directors are expected to attend two multi-day meetings per year, as well as monthly meetings. This is a voluntary position.

Individuals will be ineligible for consideration if they currently serve on the OPTN Board, served on the OPTN Board in the last 10 years or are currently on the Transitional Nominating Committee (TNC); have financial, personal, business, or professional relationships with the OPTN or members of the OPTN Board outside of and beyond their primary role; are employed by or a subcontractor to current OPTN contractors; and are personally, or employed by an entity that is, pending criminal, serious ethics, or regulatory action.

Applicants will be screened for 1) Availability (i.e., at least 12 hours per month), 2) Alignment with Modernization, and 3) Conflicts of Interest (COIs). Following that step, TNC members will score applicants in various categories based on their position:

Organ transplant professionals: Professional organ transplantation experience, ethics, finance, governance, logistics or operations experience.
Individuals with lived organ transplant experience: Lived transplantation experience, ethics, finance, governance, logistics, or operations experience.
Non-transplant professionals: Non-transplant professional experience, ethics, finance, governance, logistics or operations experience.

The TNC, with input from HRSA, will finalize dates for the special election, publicly solicit candidates and develop a slate of candidates for a vote by OPTN members later in the spring. OPTN members will vote on the Board of Directors from that slate, adhering to the current Board configuration percentages. This process largely mirrors the current OPTN election process while taking steps to facilitate establishment of a new, independent Board of Directors.

The special election brings new providers, patients, and representatives of transplant hospitals and organ procurement organizations to the Board just as in previous elections. There will be a period where the current Board and new Board will overlap for continuity of operations and knowledge transfer.

The TNC will be temporary and transitional, specific to the circumstances of the special election held by the Secretary of HHS.

Chair: General Janet Wolfenbarger (Ret. USAF), MS
- Retired United States Air Force General
- Member, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Corporation
- Member, Board of Directors, AECOM (an infrastructure firm)
- Former Chair, Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services
- Trustee, US Air Force Academy Falcon Foundation (2016-Present)
Co-Chair: Pamela D. Paulk, MSW, MBA
- Former President, Johns Hopkins Medicine International
- Living kidney donor
Andre Dick, MD
- Surgeon-in-Chief, Seattle Children’s Hospital
Colleen Jay, MD
- Surgeon and Director, Living Donor Program, Wake Forest University
Dominic Adorno, MS
- President & CEO, DonorConnect
Edward Hickey, JD
- President, American Association of Kidney Patients
Eric Gibney, MD
- Nephrologist and Program Director, Piedmont Transplant Institute in Atlanta, GA
Gena Johns, BSN
- Program Manager, Kidney/Pancreas Transplant, University of Florida Shands Transplant Center in Gainesville, FL
Lisa Lee, PhD, MA, MS
- Former Executive Director, Presidential Bioethics Commission
- Former Chief of Bioethics, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research
Lorrinda Gray-Davis
- President, Transplant Recipients International Organization
- Liver transplant recipient
Margie Shaw, PhD, JD
- Director, Clinical Ethics at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, NY
Sean Kumer, MD
- Surgeon, Chief Medical Officer and Vice President, University of Kansas Health System
Yesenia Diaz, BS
- Founder and General Contractor, Industry Grade Construction Group
- Two-time kidney transplant recipient

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has announced the new 34-member Board of Directors for the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). This launch of the OPTN Board of Directors advances HRSA’s ongoing efforts to strengthen OPTN governance, mitigate conflicts of interest, and modernize the organ donation, procurement, and transplantation system within the United States.

Voter turnout showed strong engagement from the OPTN community, with an 83 percent participation in the national election—a notable increase from the 68 percent average turnout in national elections over the past three years.

In accordance with the National Organ Transplantation Act of 1984 (NOTA) and the OPTN Final Rule, the new Board reflects the wide range of experience within the transplant community. The newly elected Board of Directors will officially begin their terms on July 1, 2025.

The new 34-member Board is comprised of:

17 (50%) transplant physicians and surgeons
- 4 transplant physicians: 1 cardiologist, 2 nephrologists, 1 hepatologist
- 12 transplant surgeons: 9 abdominal transplant surgeons (3 with pediatric focus), 3 thoracic transplant surgeons
- 1 pediatric transplant specialist

9 (26%) transplant recipients, a transplant candidate, organ donors, and family members
- 5 transplant recipients
- 1 living organ donor
- 1 family member of an adult transplant recipient
- 1 family member of a pediatric transplant recipient
- 1 family member of a deceased donor

8 (24%) representatives of organ procurement organizations (OPOs), transplant hospitals, voluntary health associations, transplant coordinators, histocompatibility experts, non-physician transplant professionals, and the general public
- 3 OPO representatives
- 1 transplant hospital representative
- 1 voluntary health association representative representing transplant professionals
- 1 histocompatibility representative
- 1 governance/finance expert
- 1 ethics expert

Of the 34-person Board, a total of 14 have lived experience as a transplant candidate, transplant recipients, organ donors, and/or family members.

The 11 Associate Regional Councillors are comprised of 10 transplant surgeons/physicians and one OPO representative.