New Kidney Allocation System Begins this Month

The Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) is implementing substantial changes to the US deceased donor kidney (DDK) allocation system this month. These modifications aim to increase life years for DDKs that are transplanted by adding allocation priority for longevity matching for potential recipients with an estimated survival in the top 20%; improve access to transplantation for moderately and highly sensitized candidates on the waiting list; improve access to transplantation for ethnic minorities; and improve efficiency and utilization of DDKs by providing more granular information regarding organ quality. OPTN has provided numerous resources related to the change.