| R 230 |
| 2021 -- S 0857 Enacted 05/04/2021 |
| S E N A T E R E S O L U T I O N |
| RECOGNIZING APRIL OF 2021 AS "DONATE LIFE MONTH" IN THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND |
| Introduced By: Senator Dawn M. Euer |
| Date Introduced: April 28, 2021 |
| WHEREAS, Since 2003, the month of April has been celebrated as National Donate Life |
| Month, during which local, state, and national activities are held in order to educate and |
| encourage individuals to register as donors; and |
| WHEREAS, Organ donation and transplantation saves lives. Globally, a person is added |
| to the national transplant waiting list every ten minutes which currently has approximately |
| 113,000 individuals awaiting an organ donation; and |
| WHEREAS, Organ donation from a single deceased donor can benefit up to eight |
| individuals, and living kidney and liver donors provide transplant candidates with the chance to |
| live longer; and |
| WHEREAS, Despite over 130 million people being registered as organ, eye, and tissue |
| donors, the need for donated organs far outweighs the supply and sadly, an average of twenty |
| people die each day while waiting for a transplant; and |
| WHEREAS, New England Donor Services (NEDS) oversees and coordinates the entire |
| donation process for thousands of families in our region each year; and |
| WHEREAS, In addition, NEDS works with nearly 200 hospitals and screens nearly |
| 50,000 potential donors; and |
| WHEREAS, In 2019, 346 patients from Rhode Island Hospital and Hasbro Children’s |
| Hospital met criteria for referral to NEDS for potential organ donation and ultimately 22 patients |
| were able to help 72 people waiting for a life-saving organ transplant; and |
| WHEREAS, The Rhode Island Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has partnered with |
| Donate Life New England, a program offered through the New England Organ Bank, that allows |
| drivers a fast and easy way to make their donation decision known; and |
| WHEREAS, Currently, 99 percent of all people who identify themselves as an organ & |
| tissue donor do so at the RI DMV; and |
| WHEREAS, Making the decision to become an organ donor is ultimately and |
| munificently choosing to give the gift of life; now, therefore be it |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island hereby celebrates April of |
| 2021 as "Donate Life Month" and urges all Rhode Islanders to register as organ donors; and be it |
| further |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate hereby recognizes New England Donor Services and the |
| Rhode Island Department of Motor Vehicles for the critical role they play in organ donations; and |
| be it further |
| RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to |
| transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to Alex Glazier, President & CEO of New |
| England Donor Services, and Walter R. Craddock, Administrator of the Rhode Island Department |
| of Motor Vehicles. |
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| LC002751 |
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