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Organ Donation (Deemed Consent) Act 2019

Question for Department of Health and Social Care

UIN 3209, tabled on 22 November 2023

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to review the impact of the Organ Donation (Deemed Consent) Act 2019 on family consent.

Answered on

30 November 2023

NHS Blood and Transplant’s evaluation of opt-out legislation in England observed a consent rate of 61% which was lower than the predicted post opt-out legislation consent rate of 78%. The study to evaluate the impact of opt-out legislation in England was designed before the COVID-19 pandemic and opt-out legislation in England was implemented on 20 May 2020 during the height of the first COVID-19 lockdown. Deceased donation numbers dropped 25% during the pandemic period and have yet to fully recover. It is acknowledged that, as the legislation coincided with COVID-19, it may never be possible to distinguish the true impact of opt-out legislation due to the impact of COVID-19 on organ donation.