Session of 1999
House Concurrent Resolution No. 5013
By Committee on Health and Human Services (By Request of the
Health Care Reform Legislative Oversight Committee)
1-29
10 A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION urging each member of the Kansas
11 Congressional Delegation to support prior rules and regulations re-
12 garding organ procurement.
13
14 WHEREAS, The United States Secretary of the Department of
15 Health and Human Services has promulgated new rules and regulations,
16 42 CFR part 121.1 through 121.12, regarding organ procurement and
17 allocation under the National Organ Transplant Act of 1984; and
18 WHEREAS, The proposed new rules and regulations issued by the
19 Secretary mandate that all organ donations be allocated to transplant re-
20 cipients at the national level first according to the policies and standard-
21 ized criteria developed under the new rules and regulations for the Na-
22 tional Organ Procurement and Transplant Network instead of allowing a
23 state to allocate donated organs through the regional organ procurement
24 organization (42 U.S.C. § 273) to a recipient from the state first; and
25 WHEREAS, Protecting the health and welfare of Kansas' citizens is a
26 chief concern and duty of the state of Kansas; and
27 WHEREAS, The new rules and regulations issued by the Secretary
28 abrogate Kansas' duty to protect the health and welfare of its citizens first;
29 and
30 WHEREAS, The existing rules and regulations promulgated under
31 the National Organ Transplant Act of 1984 respect state needs and make
32 organs available on a national basis should no state or regional recipient
33 be found works without infringing on the right and duty of a state to
34 protect its citizenry; and
35 WHEREAS, Even under the proposed new national rules and regu-
36 lations a donor may specify a named donee: Now, therefore,
37 Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of Kansas,
38 the Senate concurring therein: That the Legislature strongly urges the
39 Kansas Congressional Delegation to request and argue that Congress
40 should develop rules and regulations establishing consistency in objective
41 and measurable medical criteria to be used by national and regional organ
42 procurement and transplant centers to place a person on a waiting trans-
43 plant list. However, Congress should not approve rules and regulations
HCR 5013
2
1 which mandate organs be allocated at the national level first to the det-
2 riment of Kansas' or any other state's duty and right to protect its
3 citizenry;
4 Be it further resolved: That the Legislature urges the Kansas Con-
5 gressional Delegation to argue that because the federal rules and regu-
6 lations, both old and new, allow a donor or donor's family to name a
7 specific recipient pursuant to subsection (e) of 42 C.F.R. 121.8, the donor
8 or donor's family should not be deprived of the fundamental right to
9 designate whether the donor's property, i.e. the donated organs, should
10 go to a recipient in the state of Kansas before being allocated at the
11 regional or national level;
12 Be it further resolved: That the Legislature urges the Kansas Con-
13 gressional Delegation to argue that under the balance of power between
14 the federal and state systems of government and the powers and rights
15 reserved to the state governments in that balance, the duty and right of
16 Kansas to look after the health and welfare of its citizenry should not be
17 diminished by depriving the state of its right to first look to and help
18 recipients on the waiting list from Kansas before the donor organs are
19 ever placed in interstate commerce for allocation at the national level;
20 and
21 Be it further resolved: That the Secretary of State be directed to send
22 enrolled copies of this resolution to each member of the Kansas Con-
23 gressional Delegation.