New England Donor Services history

1983 — The first National Organ and Tissue Donor Awareness Week declared by Congress.

1985 — The Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1985 (PL 99-272)-. Began Requiring states to have written standards for the coverage of organ transplants to qualify for payments under Title XIX of the Social Security Act.

1986 — The first OPTN contract is awarded by the HHS to the United Network for Organ Sharing.

1987 — Medicare pays for heart transplants for the first time.

1989 — First successful small intestine transplant.

1995 — First living donor kidney removed by laparoscopic surgery.

1999 — First successful hand transplant, done in the United States

2001 — HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson launched the Gift of Life Donation program.

A version of the program continues today as the Donation and Transplantation Community of Practice, managed by the The Alliance(link is external). 2003 — HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson designated April as National Donate Life Month.

In 2005, transplant centers joined the program with the goal of increasing the number of organs per donor.

2006 — Donate Life America launched its Donor Designation Collaborative with the goal of increasing registered donors in the United States to 100 million.

2009 — END THE WAIT! campaign was launched by the National Kidney Foundation with the goal of increasing organ donation and ending the wait for kidney transplants.