• Nearly 100,000 men, women and children are waiting for organs for transplantation in the United States (kidneys, livers, hearts, lungs, pancreas and intestines).



• Of these, more than 8,000 are in New York State, and approximately 7,000 of them live in the greater New York metropolitan area (the area served by the New York Organ Donor Network).



• Thousands more need eyes and tissues such as heart-valves, skin and bone.



• One organ donor can save up to eight lives. One tissue donor can save or improve the quality of life for up to 50 people.



• Nationwide, 69 percent of the families consent to organ donation. (Source: HRSA Breakthrough Collaborative) By comparison, and highlighting the even more critical shortage in New York, the organ donation consent rate in the greater New York metropolitan area (which is served by the New York Organ Donor Network) in 2007 was 58%.



• Each day, an average of 18 people who are waiting for organs in the United States, die because no organs could be found for them. This means that each year, more than 6,000 people die in the United States waiting for organ transplants.



• Every 13 minutes, a new name is added to the national waiting list for organs in the United States.

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