Organ transplant programs can't reject disabled patients outright

What it does

This bill prohibits hospitals and organ transplant programs that receive federal funding from denying transplants or related services to people based on disability. It requires these programs to make reasonable accommodations (like sign language interpreters or modified policies) unless doing so would fundamentally alter the program, and allows doctors to consider disability only after an individualized assessment and only if the person cannot meet health requirements even with accommodations. The bill creates a reporting requirement and expedited complaint process at HHS.

Why we flagged it

The bill's operative mechanism is a straightforward civil-rights prohibition on disability-based discrimination in organ transplant allocation, modeled on existing ADA and Section 504 frameworks. It is not a market intervention, subsidy, or deregulation—it is a rights-protection statute.

What the text implies

• The bill's exception for 'individualized assessment' and 'professional judgment' preserves significant discretion for transplant centers; the boundary between permissible medical judgment and impermissible disability discrimination may generate litigation and require regulatory clarification.
• Requirement for 'reasonable modifications' and 'auxiliary aids and services' may increase operational costs for transplant programs, potentially shifting expenses to hospital budgets or insurance pools rather than to individual patients.
• The expedited complaint process and annual reporting requirement create new administrative burden on HHS Office for Civil Rights, which may require additional appropriations to handle increased caseload.
• By anchoring protections to federal funding, the bill may not reach private transplant programs or facilities that do not receive federal assistance, creating a potential gap in coverage.

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

Who it affects

People with disabilities gain explicit legal protection against blanket exclusion from life-saving transplants based solely on disability status, while the bill preserves medical judgment and does not mandate transplants for unqualified candidates. The accommodation requirement and individualized assessment standard shift power from categorical exclusion to case-by-case evaluation, benefiting disabled citizens without imposing unreasonable burdens on medical providers.

Named in the bill

Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, Organ Procurement Organizations (OPOs), Transplant centers, Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, National Organ Transplant Act

Where it stands

22 cosponsors: 13 Democrats, 9 Republicans.

• May 15, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
• May 15, 2025 — Referred to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions”
• Jun 17, 2026 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature…”

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

Money around this bill

6 lobbying clients named this bill on 9 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $6,353,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 16 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 82% of bills with at least one filing.

Ashley Moody, the sponsor, reported $2,315,100 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• American Medical Association — $5,643,000 on 2 filings
• Danone USA Public Benefit Corporation (fka Danone North America, Pbc) — $530,000 on 1 filing
• National Down Syndrome Society — $100,000 on 2 filings
• United Network for Organ Sharing — $50,000 on 1 filing
• Autism Speaks — $30,000 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.