Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act
Sponsored By: Representative Cammack
Passed House
Summary
This bill would establish a federal ban on disability-based discrimination in organ transplantation and require reasonable modifications and decision-support to help eligible people access evaluation, listing, transplant surgery, and post-transplant care. It ties those protections to existing federal disability and health privacy laws.
Show full summary
- Patients and families: People with disabilities would be protected at every stage of the transplant process. Covered entities must provide communication aids, supported decision-making, and reasonable policy modifications to facilitate informed consent and follow-up care.
- Providers and transplant programs: Transplant centers and related organizations could not adopt policies or memos that bar or hinder access solely because of disability. Medical decisions may still consider individualized clinical judgments about medically significant risks, but not categorical exclusions based on disability.
- Enforcement and legal framework: The Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights would handle enforcement and the bill preserves rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act, Rehabilitation Act, and stronger state or local laws. The measure does not authorize new spending.
Your PRIA Score
Personalized for You
How does this bill affect your finances?
Sign up for a PRIA Policy Scan to see your personalized alignment score for this bill and every other piece of legislation we track. We analyze your financial profile against policy provisions to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.
Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
No transplant denials due to disability
If enacted, transplant centers and providers could not deny you a transplant just because you have a disability. They also could not refuse referrals, services, or a waiting list spot for that sole reason. A doctor could consider disability only after an individualized medical exam and only if it is medically significant. The bill would not require medically inappropriate transplants.
Reasonable supports for transplant candidates
If enacted, covered providers would need to make reasonable changes so candidates with disabilities can get transplants and related care. They would need to offer aids and services unless it is an undue burden or would fundamentally alter care. Your support network could count toward meeting post-transplant care, like help with medicines. The bill would define who is a qualified candidate and what services count to include supports, home and community services (including Medicare or Medicaid), and supported decision-making.
How to enforce transplant rights
If enacted, you could file a complaint with the HHS Office for Civil Rights for faster review of transplant discrimination claims. Your rights under the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and the ACA would still apply. The bill would also bar a federal transplant board from issuing policies that block access based only on disability.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Cammack
FL • R
Cosponsors
Issa
CA • R
Sponsored 2/24/2025
Wasserman Schultz
FL • D
Sponsored 2/24/2025
Sessions
TX • R
Sponsored 2/24/2025
Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large]
DC • D
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Fitzpatrick
PA • R
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Tonko
NY • D
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Stauber
MN • R
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Miller-Meeks
IA • R
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Tenney
NY • R
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Moulton
MA • D
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Barragan
CA • D
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Miller (IL)
IL • R
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Davis (NC)
NC • D
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Maloy
UT • R
Sponsored 3/6/2025
Cohen
TN • D
Sponsored 3/6/2025
Rutherford
FL • R
Sponsored 3/6/2025
Hinson
IA • R
Sponsored 3/25/2025
Harshbarger
TN • R
Sponsored 4/7/2025
Connolly
VA • D
Sponsored 4/29/2025
Bice
OK • R
Sponsored 4/30/2025
Gottheimer
NJ • D
Sponsored 5/7/2025
Wittman
VA • R
Sponsored 5/8/2025
Harder (CA)
CA • D
Sponsored 5/13/2025
Craig
MN • D
Sponsored 5/13/2025
Magaziner
RI • D
Sponsored 5/13/2025
Bacon
NE • R
Sponsored 5/13/2025
Garbarino
NY • R
Sponsored 5/13/2025
Dingell
MI • D
Sponsored 2/24/2025
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.govTake It Personal
Get Your Personalized Policy View
Start a Free Government Policy Watch to see how policy affects your household, then upgrade to PRIA Full Coverage for year-round monitoring.
Already have an account? Sign in