Organ, tissue and eye donation is the process of recovering organs, tissue and eyes from a deceased person and transplanting them into others in order to save or enhance the lives of those in need. Up to eight lives can be saved through organ donation. Another 50 - 75 lives may be improved through tissue donation. The vision of two people can be renewed through eye donation.

There are currently more than 98,000 people in America waiting for organ transplants. Each year, approximately 6,000 people die waiting for an organ transplant that would have given them a second chance at life with their families. In addition, each year hundreds of thousands of people benefit from donated tissue and corneal grafts that are used for life-saving, sight restoring and reconstructive purposes.

Most of the state of Mississippi is served by the Mississippi Organ Recovery Agency (MORA). MORA is responsible for facilitating the donation process. Organ recovery and allocation is regulated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a division of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Organs are allocated nationally based on a complex medical formula that is established by transplant doctors, public representatives, ethicists, and organ recovery agencies. UNOS (the United Network for Organ Sharing) maintains the list of patients waiting for a transplant. A donor's blood type, tissue type, body weight, and size are matched against patients on the list. If there are multiple matches, priority is given to the sickest patients or, in the case of kidneys, those who have been on the waiting list the longest.

You may choose to donate only specific organs or tissues, including eyes. By choosing to donate any or all transplantable organs and tissues, including eyes, you will be helping the most people who can thrive from your gift. If you would like to include specific requests regarding your gift, you may type them on the enrollment form under the "Comments" section.

Specifying that an organ go to a specific individual is called "directed donation". Directed donation is legal, but it must be done at the time of donation and must be directed to a recipient who is actively listed with a transplant program. (Organs may not be directed to a group of individuals.) Directed donation is best supported by an advance directive or may be granted by next of kin at the time of donation.