Policy notices

Find summaries of OPTN policy and bylaws changes approved at board and executive committee meetings, including implementation dates and any actions you need to take.

Pending Implementation

Heart allocation changes

Effective dates

Phase 1: 9/18/2018
Phase 2: 10/18/2018

Modify adult heart allocation
12/2016 Board action

Clarification of adult heart allocation
8/2017 Executive Committee action

Review board guidance on HCM and RCM exceptions
6/2018 Board action

Other changes

Modifications to the distribution of deceased donor lungs
6/2018 Board action

Effective 6/12/2018 (Policies 1.2, 10.2.A, 10.4)
Effective 10/18/2018 (Policy 6.6.F)

Reduce reporting burdens and clarify policies on extra vessels
6/2018 Board action

Effective 9/1/2018 except for the following, which will be effective pending implementation and notice to the members:

Change to Table 16.1: Required Information on Internal Labels for Extra Vessels, number 7 (donor infectious disease results)

Changes to waiting time criteria for kidney-pancreas candidates
6/2018 Board action

Align VCA program membership requirements with other programs
6/2018 Board action

Modify lung TRF to improve post transplant lung function data
6/2018 Board action

Establish pediatric training and experience
(Amend requirements for primary liver transplant physician)
6/2018 & 12/2015 Board actions

Improving dual kidney allocation
12/2017 Board action

Improving en bloc kidney allocation
12/2017 Board action

Update transplant hospital definition
12/2016 Board action

VCA - List covered body parts - 1 of 2
6/2016 Board action

Histocompatibility bylaws rewrite: General supervisor (PDF - 306 K)
6/2015 Board action

VCA membership bylaws requirements
6/2015 Board action

Intestine membership bylaws requirements
6/2015 Board action

Implemented

2018

Clarify informed consent policies for transmittable diseases
6/2018 Board action

Effective 9/1/2018

VCA - List covered body parts (2 0f 2)
6/2016 Board action

Effective 9/1/2018

Improving the efficiency of organ allocation
12/2017 Board action

Effective 3/1/2018 (Policies 2.2, 2.11 and 2.12)
Effective 5/2/2018 (Policies 1.2 and 5.6.B)
Effective 6/12/2018 (Policies 2.11.A and 2.11.D)
Effective 6/13/2018 (Policy 5.6.C)

Revising OPTN Bylaws Appendix L
6/2018 Board action

Effective 6/12/2018

Retrospective review of clerical policy changes
6/2018 Executive Committee action

Effective 6/12/2018

Approved transplant fellowship training programs Bylaws (PDF - 302 K)
12/2017 Board action

Effective 3/1/2018

Definition of pancreas graft failure (PDF - 40 K)
6/2015 Board action

Effective 2/28/2018

Modification to HCC extension criteria (PDF - 344 K)

Effective 2/5/2018

2017

HCC auto approval criteria changes
12/2016 Board action; 12/2017 Executive Committee action

Effective 12/12/2017

Lung allocation policy modification (PDF - 565 K)
11/2017 Executive Committee action

Effective 11/24/2017

Standardize organ coding and tracking system
2/2017 Executive Committee action

Effective 11/01/2017

Improve the categorization of living donor events (PDF - 135 K)
9/2017 executive committee action

Effective 10/18/2017

Add DQA-1 equivalences table
6/2016 Board action; 6/2017 Executive Committee action

Effective 9/12/2017

Update HLA equivalency tables
12/2015 Board action; 4/2017 Executive Committee action

Effective 9/12/2017

Personnel procurement requirements
12/2015 Board action

Effective 9/1/2017

Foreign equivalent in bylaws
12/2015 Board action

Effective 9/1/2017

Bylaws rewrite
6/2017 Board action

Effective 9/1/2017

Primary kidney transplant physician update
12/2016 Board action

Effective 9/1/2017

Clarification to apply kidney minimum acceptance criteria to highly sensitized candidates (PDF - 142 K)
7/2017 Executive Committee action

Effective 9/1/2017

Simultaneous liver-kidney allocation
6/2016 Board action

Effective 8/10/2017

Kidney: KAS clarifications (part)
6/2016 Board action

Effective 6/29/2017

Retrospective review of clerical changes to policies
6/2017 Executive committee action

Effective 6/29/2017

Informed consent changes - potential living donors
12/2016 Board action

Effective 6/1/2017

Improving post-transplant communication (part)
6/2016 Board action; Required toxoplasmosis testing of all donors

Effective 4/6/2017

Pediatric lung allocation changes
12/2015 Board action

Effective 3/30/2017

All other KPD guidelines to policy (part)
6/2015 Board action

Effective 3/30/2017

Post-implementation ABO policy changes (PDF - 141 K)
12/2016 Board action

Effective 3/1/2017

Primary transplant surgeon changes
12/2016 Board action

Effective 3/1/2017

Primary transplant physician subspecialty changes
12/2016 Board action

Effective 3/1/2017

Remove donor location from required procurement log (PDF - 482 K)
12/2016 Board action

Effective 3/1/2017

Changes to imminent and eligible definitions (PDF - 150 K)
12/2016 Board action

Effective 1/1/2017

2016

Retrospective review of clerical changes to policies (PDF - 223 K)
12/2016 Executive committee action

Effective 11/10/2016

Registration fee (PDF - 25 K)
6/2016 Board action

Effective 10/1/2016

DTAC policy clarification (PDF - 19 K)
6/2016 Executive Committee action

Effective 9/1/2016

OSC policy clarification (PDF - 126 K)
8/2016 Executive Committee action

Effective 9/1/2016

HOPE Act (PDF - 34 K)
6/2016 Board action

Effective 9/1/2016

Improving post-transplant communication (part)
6/2016 Board action

Effective 9/1/2016

Kidney: KAS clarifications (part)
6/2016 Board action

Effective 9/1/2016

Regional Councillor vacancy (PDF - 37 K)
6/2016 Board action

Effective 9/1/2017

Living donor candidate registration (PDF - 20 K)
4/2016 Executive Committee action

Effective 4/14/2016

Retrospective review of clerical changes to policies (PDF - 191 K)
12/2016 Executive committee action

Effective 4/14/2016

2015

KPD informed consent
6/2015 Board action

Effective 12/1/2015

Other Actions

12/2015 Board actions (PDF - 2,532 K)

11/2015 Executive committee actions (PDF - 146 K)

OSC - ABO policy updates (PDF - 159 K)
6/2015 Board action

KPD updates (PDF - 54 K)
6/2015 Board action

Pancreas updates (PDF - 40 K)
6/2015 Board action

POC updates (PDF - 21 K)
6/2015 Board action

OPO Committee updates (PDF - 20 K)
6/2015 Board action

VCA Committee updates (PDF)
6/2015 Board action

11/2014 Board actions (PDF - 1,444 K)

Clerical changes to KP transition plan policy (PDF - 167 K)
9/2014 Executive Committee action

6/2014 Board actions - 1 (PDF - 2,147 K)

6/2014 Board actions - 2 (PDF - 207 K)

3/2014 policy corrections (PDF - 97 K)

Clarification for OPOs on PHS guideline documentation (PDF - 293 K)
1/2014 action

11/2013 Board actions (PDF - 422 K)

8/2013 Executive Committee actions (PDF - 124 K)

6/2013 board meeting actions (PDF - 1,452 K)

Discretionary listing of pediatric lung transplant candidates (PDF - 136 K)
6/2013 action

5/2013 Executive committee actions (PDF - 124 K)

11/2012 Board actions (PDF - 2,051 K)

Liver Committee updates (PDF - 394 K)
6/2012 Board actions

Thoracic Committee updates (PDF - 369 K)
6/2012 Board actions

Changes to policy, bylaws and kidney paired donation guidelines (PDF - 1,227 K)
5/2012 actions

New post transplant requirements for liver programs (PDF - 378 K)
4/2012 actions

Looking for something else? Contact us at unoscommunications@unos.org or (804) 782-4800. We maintain an archive of historical OPTN documents.

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Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network

Policy Notices