Congress removes income caps on organ donor reimbursement, expanding support for living donors.

What it does

This bill expands the Living Organ Donation Reimbursement Program by removing income caps for eligible donors (up to 700% of poverty line), raising the maximum reimbursement from current levels to $10,000 in 2027 (adjusted annually for inflation), and requiring detailed annual reporting on program outcomes. It funds the program at $5 million annually through 2037 and directs the GAO to study whether Medicare could absorb these costs directly.

Why we flagged it

The bill directly expands a federal program designed to remove financial barriers to organ donation, a public-health intervention with no private-sector carve-outs or narrow beneficiaries. The mechanism is straightforward: higher reimbursement caps and broader eligibility.

What the text implies

• Removal of income caps may shift donor demographics toward lower-income populations, potentially affecting equity in access to transplant services if recipient selection remains unchanged.
• Annual inflation adjustment to the $10,000 cap could exceed appropriated funds if donation volume or expense inflation outpaces budget growth, triggering Secretary authority to lower caps (with 30-day notice).
• GAO study on Medicare cost-shifting may signal intent to eventually transfer program costs to Medicare, which could affect Medicare beneficiary premiums or reduce other Medicare services.
• Detailed annual reporting requirements create transparency but also establish baseline metrics that could be used to justify future program cuts if outcomes do not meet implicit expectations.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Ordinary citizens who donate organs face reduced financial hardship through expanded reimbursement eligibility and higher caps, potentially increasing donation rates and saving lives. The program removes income-based gatekeeping, making support available to lower-income donors who currently face the greatest financial disincentive to donate.

Who stands to gain

• living organ donors (direct reimbursement recipients)
• organ transplant recipients (indirect benefit via increased donation supply)

Named in the bill

Department of Health and Human Services, Living Organ Donation Reimbursement Program, Section 377 of Public Health Service Act, Medicare (Title XVIII, Social Security Act), Government Accountability Office (GAO), Community Services Block Grant Act

Where it stands

3 cosponsors: 2 Democrats, 1 Republicans.

• Mar 9, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Mar 9, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means and House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a…”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

3 lobbying clients named this bill on 4 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $5,943,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 58 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 61% of bills with at least one filing.

Suzan DelBene, the sponsor, reported $1,605,299 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• American Medical Association — $5,643,000 on 2 filings
• American Kidney Fund — $240,000 on 1 filing
• American Society of Nephrology — $60,000 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.