Killing transplant funding also killing patients
A hospital in Tucson, Ariz. confirmed yesterday that a patient who was refused a liver transplant because of state budget cuts has died. A spokeswoman for the hospital said the death was ?most likely? due to the de-funding of the transplant, The Arizona Daily Star reported. The patient was the second transplant-seeking Arizona resident to die since state legislators refused to pay the bill for about a hundred organ seekers in October. The cuts are said to save the financially strapped state about $4.5 million a year.
To talk with us about the transplant process in Arizona and across the country, we’re joined by Lynne Coughlin Samson, executive director of NTAF, the National Transplant Assistance Fund in Radnor, Penn. Randy Shepherd also joins us. He’s a former plumber and father of three from Mesa, Ariz. who needs a heart transplant but was removed from the transplant list because of the funding cuts in Arizona. NTAF has assisted him with his fundraising.
The story you just read is available to read for free because thousands of listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Every day, the reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you: We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
When you make a gift of $10 or more a month, we’ll invite you to a virtual behind-the-scenes tour of our newsroom to thank you for being with The World.