New York, NY, July 20, 2006 – National Minority Awareness Day on Tuesday, August 1, will mark the 10th anniversary since the day was first set aside to increase organ and tissue donation among America’s minority populations. To coincide with National Minority Awareness day this year, the New York Organ Donor Network is urging minorities to learn the facts about donation and to sign up as organ and tissue donors, which they can do on its Web site at www.donatelifeny.org. National Minority Awareness Day was first recognized in 1996 by President Bill Clinton.

With more than 92,000 people waiting for organ transplants in the United States, and thousands more needing tissues such as corneas and skin, the shortage of organs and tissues among New Yorkers has never been greater. The data for New York’s minorities needing organ transplants underscores the desperate need:

• Of the 6,868 people waiting for organ transplants in the Greater New York metropolitan area (New York City, Long and the northern counties up to Poughkeepsie), 2,240 or 33 percent are black; 1,347 or 20 percent are Hispanic; and 459 or 7 percent are Asian.

• Of the 4,759 New York metro patients awaiting kidneys, 2,006 or a staggering 42 percent are black

The Donor Network points out that with a 382% increase nationally in the number of blacks awaiting organ transplants since 1991, minority donors can play a pivotal role in reducing the number of deaths of those waiting for organs.

Elaine Berg, the Donor Network’s president and CEO, said, “When minorities commit to saving lives through donation, they impact so many people. By making the decision to ‘Donate Life,’ our region’s various minority communities could save the life of a neighbor, a child, a friend, a colleague, or even someone in their immediate family. So we really do depend upon these New Yorkers enrolling in the Donor Registry and informing their loved ones about their decision.”

On a national level, the necessity to find more minority donors is described as “a need of epic proportions,” according to Dr. Lynt Johnson, the chief of the division of transplant and hepatobiliary surgery at Georgetown University Hospital. “While African-Americans say they wish to donate at least some organs or tissues, many are unaware of the dire need that exists within our community and fail to formalize their commitment to being organ and tissue donors and tell their families,” Dr. Johnson told Donate Life America, the organization that coordinates public education about donation across the United States.

Dr. Johnson added: “Often the lack of organs donated by African-Americans means longer waiting periods for transplants, and sometimes contributes to death. It’s important to realize that while African-Americans make up 14% of the U.S. population, they represent 35% of those awaiting a kidney transplant. One donor can save or improve over 50 lives.”

Research has consistently shown that for many minorities, organ and tissue donation remains a dormant issue and a mystery until an immediate need arises. A lack of trust in the waiting list and health care systems in general present a major barrier to minority donation. The New York Organ Donor Network points out that while the shortage of donors is dire, many people of color do benefit from life-saving organ transplants. For instance:

• Of the 1,612 organ transplants in the Greater New York metropolitan area in 2005, a total of 378 recipients or 23 percent were black; and

• 301 recipients or 19 percent were Hispanic.

At the same time, of the 261 deceased organ donors in the New York metro area last year, 110 donors or 42 percent were white; 53 donors or 20 percent were black, and 90 donors or 35 percent were Hispanic.

The New York Organ Donor Network’s Elaine Berg explained that by enrolling in the Donor Registry, a confidential database administered by the New York Department of Health, New York residents make it easier for their next of kin to consent to donation if the situation should arise. “Only a small portion of people upon their death are medically suitable for donation. That is why, when a family agrees to donate, it is a very big yes. Tragically, that is why a no is so devastating to those clinging to life.”

In addition to being able to enroll in the New York Organ and Tissue Donor Registry on the Donor Network’s Web site, New York residents can learn more about the donation process. There is also information specific to minority populations, including data, important links to organizations, and a newly introduced section in the Chinese language.

For more information, contact Martin Woolf 646-291-4460 or mwoolf@nyodn.org.