Trump administration moves to shut Miami organ-donation group citing 'failing' performance

The Trump administration moved Thursday to shut down the Life Alliance Organ Recovery Agency, a Miami nonprofit that coordinates organ recovery from deceased donors, saying it is failing due to underperformance, unsafe practices and paperwork errors. The agency would be the first organ procurement organization to be decertified by the federal government if the decision stands, CMS officials said.

The move follows an investigation that identified a 2024 case in which an unspecified mistake led a surgeon to decline a donated heart for a patient awaiting transplant. Dr. Mehmet Oz, who heads the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said problems included would-be donations that went unrecovered, organs sent to the wrong destination and a lack of staff.

Life Alliance, a division of the University of Miami Health System, can appeal the decision. If it is shut down, it would mark the first time the federal government has decertified an organ procurement organization.

There are more than 100,000 Americans on the transplant waiting list, and thousands die waiting because there aren’t enough donations to go around. Last year there were more than 48,000 transplants nationwide, most from deceased donors. Changes to the transplant system have been underway for years to increase donations, reduce waste of potentially usable organs and address other concerns, including safeguards after complaints last year that another OPO did not stop donation preparations quickly enough when some patients showed signs of life.

Organ donation can proceed only after a hospital has declared someone dead — and by law, OPOs cannot be involved in that decision. On Thursday, Oz sought to reassure would-be donors. "Congress has thoughtfully and aggressively pursued some horrifying stories that have chilled some Americans' enthusiasm for donating organs. We are here today to tell you this system is safe. It’s rigorously being addressed," he said, adding later, "I want to applaud the OPOs that are doing a great job because most are."

Life Alliance did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The agency can appeal the decision, and if it is ultimately shut down it would mark a historic step for federal oversight of organ procurement.