Public Policy

Key Position Statements
Legislation and Regulatory Updates
Contact Your Congressional Offices

Why We Advocate

The AST has been instrumental in assisting federal and state public policy decision-makers in the crafting and formation of a variety of legislative and regulatory initiatives. Information is provided to Congress and key officials in the Executive Branch about the organization's views and positions as determined by the AST Board of Directors. Through these efforts, the AST represents the interests of physicians and scientists in all solid organ transplantation specialties.

We know transplant professionals like you are passionate about ensuring that patients have access to essential medicines, insurance coverage, and the best care possible. We know that advocating for patients is important, so important that AST devotes one of its four strategic goals towards advancing the AST's patient-focused advocacy program.

In the past, AST leaders have been called upon to provide testimony, as well as serve on advisory panels to Congress, State legislatures, the National Institutes of Health, Institutes of Medicine, Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services, the Office of the Secretary-Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control, etc.

Key Issues on Capitol Hill

The AST supports a wide variety of public policy issues including: insurance coverage for transplant drugs, equitable organ allocation, recognition and support of live donors, physician reimbursements, and research support. The AST fights inequitable laws and harmful regulations every day - for its members, the transplant community at large, and the patients we all serve. Raise your voice and join us.

• AST recently worked closely with Federal and State decision-makers to ensure that access to organ transplantation remains a protected and essential benefit during the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA/ObamaCare).
• AST works to ensure that new Federal healthcare rules do not inadvertently prevent patients access to immunosuppressive drugs.
• AST lobbies for transplant initiatives within the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to increase NIH funding for biomedical research and advance drug development in transplantation.
• AST address specific transplant healthcare challenges in areas such as research, therapeutic innovation, and patient access to care by joining in partnerships with Federal healthcare agencies including the Office of the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as well as many State Departments of Health and Insurance Commissioners.

The AST  is a leading voice on Capitol Hill, within the Executive Branch, and in State Capitols on important issues impacting the field of solid organ transplantation. Members of the AST travel to Washington, D.C., to educate and deliver the organization's public policy agenda directly to key federal decision-makers and their staff. AST also maintains a full-time advocacy office in the nation's capitol.

In the past, AST leaders have been called upon to provide testimony, as well as serve on advisory panels to Congress, State Legislatures, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Institutes of Medicine, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Office of the Secretary-Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Controle, etc.

AST Public Policy Form 

The AST Public Policy Committee is pleased to introduce the AST Public Policy Form, a survey aimed at soliciting your perspectives on legislative and regulatory issues that significantly influence both patients and professional practice. With this new initiative, the goal is to establish a platform for the AST membership and transplant community to actively engage with the Public Policy Committee by sharing their invaluable ideas and perspectives. We look forward to your input as we navigate the dynamics of the ever-evolving landscape of transplant care and practice. In this form, you have the ability to submit a response on behalf of a COP or Committee. We encourage you to utilize this option only if there has been discussion and support by the Committee leadership or the COP EC. Otherwise, please submit as an individual.