Patient advocates have sharply criticized the federal government's plans to not expand registration options for the organ donation registry, contrary to the Bundestag's resolution. The Stiftung Patientenschutz views this as a loss of credibility for the state. The federal government intends to comply with the states' demand to eliminate registration at ID offices.
In 2020, the Bundestag decided to establish a central organ donation registry, where citizens could also register at ID offices in the future. However, this legal requirement was not implemented by the federal states, as there are hardly any data protection-secure terminals in municipalities across Germany that are accessible to everyone.
Eugen Brysch, chairman of the Stiftung Patientenschutz, criticized the federal government's intention to now eliminate this registration option. "A state that wants to promote organ donation willingness loses credibility this way," he told the RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND). Brysch emphasized that only few people have registered so far because the implementation is lacking. "Instead of demanding compliance from the states, the communal duty to provide barrier-free offers is now to be removed," he added.
The Bundestag rejected a proposal for an opt-out system in 2020 but approved the central registry. Later, the health ministers of the states demanded the removal of the ID office option, which the federal government now intends to follow. This change is part of the revision of the Transplantationsgesetz, which for the first time allows cross-donations. An expert hearing on this legislative proposal is scheduled in the Bundestag on Wednesday.
Since the registry's introduction in March 2024, half a million people have registered in the organ donation database.
