"To march, to advocate, to empower people with knowledge."
           - Don Brezizinski, Dialysis Patient from Wausau, WI

Join the National Kidney Foundation's People Like us TAKE ACTION Network and let your voice be heard to make lives better!

Patients, family members and healthcare professionals have a HUGE opportunity to make their voices heard. By joining TAKE ACTION, YOU can urge our state and federal representatives to support kidney disease and organ donation programs, both in Wisconsin and throughout the country.

 Why You Should Join…

o   Receive real-time NKF updates about legislation being discussed in Washington.

o   Take an active role in improving healthcare for all.

o   Raise awareness among our elected officials about the importance of prevention and early detection programs; organ donation initiatives and medical research

o   Make a difference for others!

How YOU Can Make a Difference…

o   Sign up, of course! Simply go to www.kidney.org/takeaction to join.

It’s easy, free, and educational.

o   VOTE!

o   Use NKF sample letters to let your representative in Washington, D.C. know about what is important.

o   Tell family, friends, and colleagues to join so that they can truly make a difference in thousands of people’s lives!

o   Meet with your representative in person.

 
TAKE ACTION Today!

www.kidney.org/takeaction

Information taken from www.kidney.org

 UNOS and the OPTN
Getting Involved in the Public Comment Process

Under contract with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Services and Resources Administration (HRSA),the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) coordinates the nation’s organ transplant system, providing vital services to meet the needs of men, women and children awaiting lifesaving organ transplants. This nationwide system is called the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). UNOS, acting as the OPTN contractor, unites transplant professionals and organ procurement specialists throughout the nation to match transplant candidates with the organs they need.

The field of organ transplantation depends on the cooperation of many people and organizations, and it is vital to ensure the opinions of all interested parties are heard and addressed. Therefore, the OPTN strives to achieve consensus in the development of policies that determine how organs are allocated throughout the nation.

Committees within the OPTN review transplant data and issues and periodically may draft a new or revised policy to address a particular issue. Before going to the OPTN/UNOS Board of Directors for a vote, UNOS publishes all substantial policy proposals for public comment by other committees, OPTN/UNOS regions and interested persons or organizations. The sponsoring committee will consider all comments received before it makes a final recommendation to the board. The board then considers policy proposals in light of the input received.

Final decisions about policy proposals are published on the OPTN and UNOS sites. A policy notice detailing all board-approved policy changes is sent to OPTN/UNOS members and other interested parties approximately 30 days after the board meeting. This notice includes all implementation dates that are available at time of publication.

Input from transplant candidates–the people most affected by new or revised policy–is an important part of the public comment process. The OPTN strongly encourages all interested individuals–especially transplant candidates–to express their views on policy proposals by getting involved in the public comment process.

You can view proposals that go out for public comment several ways. You can visit the OPTN and UNOS web sites directly at www.optn.org or www.unos.org, or you can send an e-mail to publiccomment@unos.org and sign up to receive e-mail notification of the document. If you are unable to access the Internet, you can receive a paper copy of the document by calling or faxing a request to the UNOS public comment coordinator. You may also submit a written request to UNOS.

View the original PDF of this information here