SPRINGFIELD – Secretary of State Jesse White is promoting National Minority Donor Awareness Month to raise awareness of organ/tissue donation for multicultural communities at the website LifeGoesOn.com. Nationally, people of color comprise 59% of the waiting list for organ transplants; however, this year they accounted for only 34% of those who donated organs, according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. People of color are disproportionately affected by illnesses such as hypertension and diabetes, which can lead to the need for dialysis or a kidney transplant, increasing the number of patients on the organ transplant waiting list.
“Unfortunately, minorities are in the greatest need of organ transplants, yet they donate at a lower rate,” said Secretary of State Jesse White.
According to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network in Illinois:
• 1,484 African Americans are on the waiting list, but in 2021 only 139 African Americans became donors.
• 880 Hispanic Americans are on the waiting list, but last year only 90 Hispanic Americans became donors.
• 239 Asian Americans are on the waiting list, but only 9 Asian Americans became organ donors in 2021.
Transplants can be successful regardless of the ethnicity of the donor and recipient; however, the chance of long-term survival may be greater if the donor and recipient are closely matched in terms of their shared ethic background.
More than 7.4 million people in Illinois are registered as organ/tissue donors, yet there are approximately 4,000 people waiting for transplants. Each year, 300 people in Illinois die because of the shortage of organs.
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