Mid South Transplant Foundation. And Organ Transplantation. “My Passion” “My Pledge” and “My Purpose”
Dear Friends,
Mid-South Transplant Foundation, which is very near and dear to my heart, is under attack and I am asking for your help. Please take a couple of minutes of your time to send a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to support fairness in the allocation of transplantable organs.
The crux of the issue is this: Methodist is protesting federal regulations that will create a fairer system for all patients needing an organ because it will negatively impact their bottom line.
Mid-South’s mission has always been to advocate for all recipients and all donors. No one cares more about patients and this issue than Mid-South Transplant Foundation. This is proven through their support of these new regulations – which are the same regulations that govern transplant programs in 47 other states and are supported by the entire transplant community.
One way that you can help is by writing a letter to CMS urging them to support the federal rules designed to ensure fairness in the allocation of transplantable organs by denying Methodist’s waiver application. I have attached a sample letter.
Letters can either be emailed to MSTF at mstf@midsouthdonor.org and they will forward them to CMS or you can mail them to CMS yourself. If mailed directly to CMS, please email a copy to msft@midsouthdonor.org so they can keep a record of all letters submitted on their behalf.
You can find more information about this issue by visiting www.savinglivesmidsouth.com.
Thank you for your support of the Mid-South Transplant Foundation and our fight to save lives and ensure fairness in how organs are allocated to those in greatest need.
What’s happening …
- The regulations affecting how organs are allocated in the state of Tennessee is changing.
The current arrangement for Tennessee was not designed to be permanent.
- Tennessee is only one of three remaining states in the nation to have such a sharing agreement. The national system is designed to make certain life-saving organs are made available to the people that need them. The current arrangement in Tennessee no longer meets this goal as it allows those in less need, to receive an organ in a shorter period of time.
- For patients that can afford it, this sharing agreement allows them to “cut to the front of the line” and receive organs faster here in Tennessee. For the hospital doing these transplants, it allows them to do more transplants … including more people from outside the local community.
- Methodist Healthcare, by all means a fine and respectable organization, has benefited from this agreement tremendously over the years as they have been able to build a highly successful (and profitable) transplant center that’s attracted the likes of high-profile patients like Steve Jobs.
- In 2008, the national organization that governs organ allocation announced plans to eliminate this special sharing agreement (after years of research) and replace it with the same allocation system that governs 47 states because it’s fairer and more ethical and allows the sickest people to get equal access to life-saving organs.
- The Methodist has appealed – and repeatedly lost – this decision for four years at every level. Now, with new regulations slated for December, they’ve launched an aggressive public relations campaign against our organization – an organization that has helped increase donation and transplantation in this community - and are urging us to merge with an organization in Nashville so they’ll have access to more organs – specifically more livers.
- They would like to bypass federal rules and partner with an organization like ours that is outside our local area so they’d get access to a larger number of livers. This isn’t fair to the thousands of people that don’t have a lot of resources, yet need life-saving organs.
- Methodist has business motives for fighting these changes and trying to force a merger between the two organ recovery agencies. The intended goal is to obtain access to a larger number of livers, not kidneys, which are by far more profitable to transplant. If patients were the primary motive, they would be more concerned about kidney transplants than they are liver transplants. The kidney waitlist is more than 5 times as large as the liver waitlist, affecting many more African Americans.
How this will really impact Memphis …
- Despite what you’ve heard, people aren’t going to die because of these improved regulations.
- Instead, the sickest patients will get the organs they need to live – no matter where they live or how much money they have. It’s what’s fair and just. It’s why the government created the system.
- Here’s how it will work –
- Priority for organs will be given in a larger region than it is now.
- Each organ goes to the sickest person locally, followed by the sickest person in our region.
- Methodist argues that the new regulations will decrease their access to organs by 75%, causing more patients to die. This is absolutely not true.
- When in fact, this is the truth -
- Methodist will have priority access to a smaller number of organs, but they will continue to have access to organs from our region (which includes the rest of Tennessee) and other states across the country. They’ll still have enough organs to serve our local population.
- Currently Methodist has 37 % percent of their liver transplant waitlist that live outside of the Mid-South. These individuals may not be able to get a liver quicker in Memphis than they could back home once the regulations change.
- These regulations are good for patients. They’re fair and just. They’re not good for Methodist and the business they’ve built.
Why MSTF needs to remain local and independent …
- If merging with another organization would help, we’d do it in a heartbeat. The truth is, it simply won’t. It would help Methodist, but it wouldn’t help patients across the country.
- MSTF’s mission is to be an advocate for all recipients regardless of how much money they have or where they live – not patients at one transplant center.
- If we “merged” with the Nashville organization, it would be an acquisition and all local efforts would be shifted to Nashville and governed by their culture and business practices. MSTF outperforms the Nashville organization and the Nashville organization has basically no outreach programs for African Americans. A merger would absolutely decrease the number of organs available for transplant.
- For example, our outreach efforts to the African American community in Memphis have dramatically increased the rate at which African Americans consent to donation from 27% to 57% in our community. In fact, we’re rated No. 1 in the country for percentage of African American donors. This is a vital issue for Memphis.
- If we were acquired by another organ procurement organization, the focus tailored to meet the unique needs of our community would be lost. We appreciate that this part of the state is unique.
- Methodist is pushing for a merger as it would help their bottom line and provide them with an unfair advantage in how organs are distributed. This unfair advantage allows them to transplant their patients in a shorter time, often bypassing someone who is in greater need of an organ.
- If MSTF chose to merge with TDS, it means that MSTF has taken on the responsibility to determine how organs are allocated in our state and region. This issue is too big and NOT the responsibility of MSTF. The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) is the organization deemed responsible by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to take on this responsibility.
How you can help or learn more …
- Visit www.savinglivesmidsouth.com to download a letter of support.
- Write a letter to the editor or call into a local news station.
Please email or message me to get a copy of the letter to send out. I want to express my thanks and graditude for all that have supported me in this and I pray God blesses you tremendously. James Cruse
Write a letter to the editor or call into local news stations.
Letters can either be emailed to MSTF at mstf@midsoutdonor.org and they will be forwarded them to CMS or you can email them to CMS yourself. please email a copy to mstf@midsouthdonor.org so they can keep a record submitted on thier behalf.
Thank you for your support of the Mid-south Transplant Foundation and my passion and the fight to save lives and ensure fairness in how organs are allocated to those in greatest need. James Cruse
