LiveOnNY Sets Record for Organ Donation & Transplantation in 2019

LiveOnNY Sets Record for Organ Donation and Transplantation in a Single Year & A 55 Percent Jump Over the Last Five Years

Nearly 1,000 Organs Transplanted in 2019

Number of Registered Organ Donors Also Up Ten Percent in 2019 vs. 2018

New York, N.Y. (January 9, 2020) - LiveOnNY, the federally designated nonprofit organ procurement organization (OPO) which oversees and coordinates organ, eye and tissue donation and transplantation in the greater New York area, set a new record in 2019 with nearly 1,000 organs transplanted.

The achievement marks the fifth consecutive year that LiveOnNY has seen an increase in the number of organs transplanted - a 55% jump since 2015 - and underscores the OPO’s unswerving commitment to life-saving donation and transplantation. The organization serves an area encompassing 13 million residents in New York City, Long Island, Westchester and the lower Hudson Valley.

“More New Yorkers were given a second chance at life last year thanks to our world-renowned transplant surgeons, hospital critical care teams and the tireless, compassionate staff at LiveOnNY who work around the clock 365 days-a-year to make the gift of life possible,” said Lee H. Perlman, Chairman of the LiveOnNY Board of Directors. “Our transplant community made impressive progress and that momentum will continue. But no matter how heartening these achievements may be, we have a commitment to provide the gift of life to every New Yorker still on the waiting list--and that will remain our chief focus, in 2020 and for years to come.”

During 2019, 938 hearts, lungs, livers, kidneys and intestinal organs were transplanted from 341 donors and their families who said yes to donation during their darkest hours, so someone else could live on. That compares with 611 organs transplanted from 220 donors in 2015.

LiveOnNY: 2015-2019 Organ Donation and Transplantation Growth

LiveOnNY has helped to save 20,000 lives and improve more than half a million lives through eye and tissue donation since the organization’s founding in 1978.

Presently, nearly 113,000 ailing adults and children across the nation are waiting to receive a lifesaving organ – including 10,000 New Yorkers.

“We are committed to saving more lives in 2020 and building on the advances we have achieved in the past five years,” said Helen Irving, President and CEO of LiveOnNY. “Our staff and our hospital and community partners are working hard toward the day when the waiting list is zero. That is our pledge to the people of New York.”

LiveOnNY’s record-setting year was also made possible by more New Yorkers saying “yes” to organ donation on their driver’s licenses by signing up on the state’s donor registry. There are currently over 6 million New Yorkers on the Donate Life New York State registry compared to less than 4 million five years ago – and a 10% increase from 2018.

These growing numbers have been driven by a public awareness campaign that LiveOnNY has strongly supported, underscored by its commitment to educate and collaborate with the 100 hospitals, 11 transplant centers, high schools and key community groups in its service area.

While the 2019 record-setting results tell an encouraging story, the most powerful indications of how organ donation impacts human lives are in the stories told by New York recipients and donor families.

Angie Tempio, a 25-year-old Long Island woman with cardiomyopathy, was nearing death’s door until she received a new heart in July 2019.

“I am so grateful to my donor for giving me a second chance at life,” said Ms. Tempio, who has chronicled her journey on Instagram. “This heart has given me a chance to one day have a child of my own, to have a career and now do the little things that everyone else takes for granted like being able to walk upstairs.”

Former New York City Detective Mike McDonnell tragically lost his 26-year-old daughter in February 2019 to a rare and sudden brain anomaly. Victoria McDonnell’s final act of kindness saved three lives and gave her family great solace knowing she lives on.

“I am so proud that Victoria was a registered organ donor and that she gave life to others,” said Mr. McDonnell, who is Director of Life Safety & Security at Silverstein Properties and made front page news when he ran the NYC marathon in November to champion organ donation. “It is the only thing that has kept me sane. We are so grateful to LiveOnNY for making the donation happen.”

ABOUT LIVEONNY:

LiveOnNY is a nonprofit, federally designated organ procurement organization (OPO) dedicated to saving lives, providing comfort, and strengthening legacies through organ, eye, and tissue donation. The OPO, which was established in 1978, serves a culturally and ethnically diverse population of 13 million residents in New York City, Long Island and the lower Hudson Valley. Working closely with transplant centers and hospitals, LiveOnNY coordinates organ, eye, and tissue donation for transplant, educates the public and healthcare professionals about donation and transplantation, and promotes the importance of signing up on the New York State Donate Life Registry. LiveOnNY works closely with 11 transplant centers, nearly 100 hospitals, and several tissue and eye banks. LiveOnNY is accredited by the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO) and a member of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), which oversees the organ transplant waiting list in the U.S. For more information, please visit LiveOnNY.org.