17 Feb 2023 • A clause that prohibited patients older than 65 from receiving organs from dead bodies for transplants has been removed by the Union health ministry. Organ transplants are now available to people of any age. As it breached the Right to Life, the pertinent section of the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) guidelines was removed. The government's decision to eliminate the transplant domicile policy as part of the "One Country, One Policy" initiative has also created a shift in this department. An organ recipient could previously only sign up for a transplant in his / her state of residence. The Gujarat high court invalidated this last year. Today, a patient can register for a transplant in any state. The patient will be identified throughout hospitals in multiple states by a distinct identity number. The health ministry has also asked states to stop charging fees for organ recipient registrations. In India, between 25,000 and 30,000 liver transplants are required each year. Around 1,500 of those are being conducted. In India, 50,000 people get heart failure each year, yet only 10 to 15 heart transplants are carried out. Approximately 25,000 corneal transplants are performed annually despite a need of 100,000.

Source: The WIRE | Read full story