We always like to keep everyone informed as to our Members' activities and where their interests lie. Check out this press release from Rep. Dale Folwell of Forsyth County and let us know if you'd like to help!
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Raleigh, NC
– As National Donate Life Month draws to an end, North
Carolinians are being urged to become registered organ
donors.North Carolina is close to reaching a
milestone four million registered donors.Representative Dale Folwell, an advocate for organ, eye and tissue
donation, is urging citizens to become a registered organ donor by checking
their driver’s license for the heart.Folwell issued the challenge at a press conference held last week
stating that North Carolina
needs only 22,000 more donors by the end of April to meet this goal.
Representative Folwell said,
“After a long winter, North Carolinians are
ready to rally around something positive like organ donation.If everyone would simply check their driver’s
license for the heart and then respond on-line at www.donatelifenc.org or by going to a
DMV office and adding a heart, the great state of North Carolina can hit the unprecedented
four million donor mark.Anywhere in North Carolina where
twenty people or more are gathered, someone in the group has a story of being
impacted by organ donation as a donor family, recipient or lost a loved one
waiting for an organ.”
In 2007, Representative Folwell introduced a modification
of State law that allowed drivers to rely on the heart symbol as an indication
of their consent to be an organ and eye donor. The “Heart Prevails Act” is
making a positive difference for many North
Carolina patients waiting in line for
transplants.The North Carolina Eye Bank
and the LifeShare of the Carolinas Eye Bank have reported a 58% increase
statewide from 2007 to 2009 in corneal transplants.According to Carolina Donor Services and
LifeShare of the Carolinas, organ transplants
from 2007 to 2009 have increased almost 15%.
Prior to the passage of the “Heart
Prevails Act,” North Carolinians were able to
indicate their preference to become an organ donor by including a heart on
their license, but the graphic did not allow emergency room or hospital
personnel to rely on the heart symbol as a first-person directive. “Most
citizens were unaware that selecting the heart to be displayed on their driver
licenses did not automatically make them organ donors,” said Folwell.The change in the law covers all current
drivers with hearts on their licenses, and also makes it easier for citizens to
change their donor status online by visiting www.donatelifenc.org.
“The success of the Organ Donation registry in North Carolina would not
have been possible without the interest and passion of the North Carolina
Division of Motor Vehicles examiners, first responders and transplant
centers.Because of these people, wishes
are being granted and lives are being saved,” said Folwell.
Posted by NC House Republicans in Uncategorized
on 4/6/2010
