A Trump-linked legal organization has initiated a formal review of a Biden-era kidney transplant policy amid ethical concerns over outside influence and patient safety.
The organization behind the inquiry, America First Legal (AFL), filed Freedom of Information Act requests to several federal agencies, including the Department of Health and Human Services, CMS, and HRSA. Their filings spotlight the Increasing Organ Transplant Access (IOTA) Model, a mandatory six-year program approved in December 2024 and set to launch in mid-2025. The program aims to expand kidney transplant access through a system of financial incentives and penalties tied to hospital performance.
However, recent scrutiny has raised red flags: an internal HRSA review suggested that third-party or for-profit entities may have had undue influence on the program’s structure and execution. The concerns extend to potential risks including favoritism, ethical missteps, patient safety issues, and unequal allocation across communities.
AFL’s legal team is demanding internal communications, meeting agendas, and correspondence between federal staff and external groups relevant to the model’s creation and policy design. The challenge raises broader questions about transparency, accountability, and integrity in healthcare policy-making.