Kidney & pancreas
Effective Jan. 5, 2023, kidney programs are required to assess their waiting lists and correct waiting times for any Black kidney candidates disadvantaged by having their kidney function overestimated due to use of a race-inclusive calculation.
Visit the FAQ page for professionals for more information.
Policy toolkits & FAQs
- Kidney paired donation
- Kidney allocation system
- Pancreas allocation system
- Waiting time modifications for kidney candidates affected by race-inclusive eGFR calculations
Allocation calculators
- CPRA calculator (calculated panel reactive antibody)
Used to evaluate candidates for kidney, pancreas and k/p transplants - EPTS calculator (estimated post transplant score)
Assigned to all adult candidates on the kidney waiting list - KDPI calculator (kidney donor profile index)
Summarizes the risk of graft (organ) failure after kidney transplant
Monitoring reports
- Six-month waiting time modification/One-year race neutral eGFR calculations monitoring report (11/20/2023)
- Six-month monitoring report: Race-neutral eGFR calculations (5/15/2023)
- Six-month monitoring report: Establish minimum kidney donor criteria to require biopsy (10/11/2023)
- Two-year monitoring report continues to show improvements in equity in access to kidney transplants for several key populations (7/6/2023)
- One-year monitoring report shows increase in kidney transplants following policy changes (7/1/2022)
- Updated two-year monitoring report available for dual and en bloc kidney allocation (4/1/2022)
- Updated monitoring report available for kidney allocation policies (10/8/2021)
- Kidney allocation monitoring report available (6/22/2021)
- Two-year monitoring report available for pancreas allocation policies (7/10/2023)
- One-year monitoring report available for pancreas allocation policies (6/24/2022)
- Updated monitoring report available for pancreas allocation policies (10/7/2021)
- Pancreas allocation monitoring report available (7/6/2021)
Policy & guidance
News
- Community results of winter 2022 kidney and pancreas prioritization exercises now available (4/22/2022)
- New kidney, pancreas allocation policies in effect (3/15/2021)
- March 15 policy implementation: Removal of DSA from kidney and pancreas allocation (3/1/2021)
- Implementation of kidney and pancreas policies (2/12/2021)
- Letter from HHS acting secretary to Jones Day regarding critical comment (2/12/2021)
- OPTN response to critical comments received about revised kidney policy (1/4/2021)
- Letter from HHS to OPTN Board president and OPTN executive director (12/21/2020)
- HRSA directive to delay kidney allocation policy implementation (12/14/2020)
- Pre-implementation notice: Removal of DSA and region from kidney and pancreas allocation to go into effect Dec. 15 (11/15/2020)
- Pre-implementation notice: Phase I of new kidney medical urgency requirements to implement Dec. 1 (11/12/2020)
- Transplant patient webinar addresses upcoming changes to kidney and pancreas distribution (11/10/2020)
- Policy changes to kidney and pancreas allocation to be implemented Dec. 15 (10/20/2020
- Changes to kidney and pancreas allocation to be implemented later this year (9/11/2020)
- Additional provisions adopted to upcoming kidney, pancreas distribution system (6/9/2020)
- New policy adopted to improve kidney, pancreas allocation (12/5/2019)
- Revised kidney and pancreas proposals going to the OPTN Board of Directors; briefing papers available (11/26/2019)
- Modifications made to kidney and pancreas allocation proposals, import backup workgroup and medical urgency subcommittee formed (11/18/2019)
- Kidney and pancreas allocation proposals modified to advance 250 NM circle, fewer proximity points (10/28/2019)
- Committees to review kidney and pancreas proposals (10/18/2019)
- Kidney and Pancreas Distribution Modeling: Analysis at a Glance (8/7/2019)
- Kidney allocation proposal maps showing 250 NM and 500 NM circles (8/2019)
- Public comment open August 2 through October 2, 2019 (8/2/2019)
- Kidney Accelerated Placement project fpr national offers begins July 18 (7/17/2019)
- Kidney and pancreas committees refine distribution policy options (7/4/2019)
- Dual and en bloc kidney allocation changes (6/26/2019)
- Kidney/Pancreas Workgroup Board Report (6/10/2019)
- SRTR modeling available for kidney and pancreas distribution (6/10/2019)
- Webinars discuss revisions to kidney and pancreas allocation policies (6/10/2019)
- Journal article assesses kidney allocation system (KAS) (2/18/2019)
- Public comment open January 22 through March 22, 2019 (2/21/2019)
- Concept paper: "Eliminate the use of DSAs and regions from kidney and pancreas distribution" (1/2019)
- SRTR modeling results available for kidney and pancreas distribution proposal (12/10/2018)
Kidney
- OPTN policies 8 and 11: allocation of kidneys and kidney-pancreas (PDF - 2.5 M; 2/2022)
- Evaluation plan guidance for policies 8 and 11 (PDF - 91 K; 7/2021)
- Increase non A1 and non A1B kidneys for type B candidates
(PDF - 317 K; 12/2017) - KAS two-year analysis (7/2017)
- Equity in access report update (8/2017)
- Equity in access report - original (11/2016)
- Kidney Transplantation Committee documents
- Guidance: Procedures to mark kidney laterality (1/2015)
- Patient referral to kidney transplantation (9/2015)
- Kidney donor profile index (KDPI) guide for clinicians
- Collaborative innovation and improvement network
Pancreas
- OPTN policy 11: allocation of pancreas and kidney-pancreas (PDF - 2.5 M; 2/2022)
- Evaluation plan guidance for policy 11 (PDF - 91 K; 7/2021
- Pancreas Transplantation Committee documents
- Benefits of pancreas after kidney transplantation
(PDF - 505 K; 12/2017) - Pancreas allocation system introduction
- Charges for pancreata recovered for islet transplantation (1/2007)
Kidney Accelerated Placement project
Find news and updates on the Kidney Accelerated Placement project, a one-year pilot to accelerate national offers of hard-to-place kidneys.