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Category Archives: Press Release

19 Oct

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News Press Release

Donate Life California Celebrates Successful Passage of AB 1268, Signed by Governor Newsom

New Legislation to Transform Organ Donation and Save Lives

SACRAMENTO, CA, October 16, 2023 – AB 1268, a landmark legislation that promises to significantly impact organ and tissue donation in the state, was signed by Governor Newsom. AB 1268, championed by Assemblywoman Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks), represents a crucial step forward in streamlining the organ donor registration process. This legislation makes organ and tissue donor registration more accessible and efficient for Californians. By including a checkbox on the state income tax return, individuals can now opt to become donors with ease, contributing to the growth of the California Organ and Tissue Donor Registry.

Assemblywoman Irwin shares, “With this new law, Californians will have the chance to help save more lives through this important program. Ensuring we have a strong organ donation registry is critical for Californians and by forging this new partnership between the Franchise Tax Board and Donate Life California we hope to potentially save more lives every year by connecting more patients in need with donors.”

Key Highlights of AB 1268:

  • Efficient Information Transfer: The Franchise Tax Board will be responsible for annually sending this information to the California Organ and Tissue Donor Registry for individuals who have chosen to become organ donors. This streamlined process will enhance the accuracy and efficiency of organ donor registrations.
  • Simplified Organ Donor Registration: AB 1268 will require the Franchise Tax Board to revise the California resident income tax return to include a checkbox for individual taxpayers who self-prepare their returns to elect to be an organ donor with the California Organ and Tissue Donor Registry.

“Since the creation of the Donate Life California registry, Californians have taken even greater strides to help save the lives of thousands,” stated Jim Martin, Chief Executive Officer of Donate Life California. Donate Life California feels that every Californian has the power to make a difference when they sign up to be an organ, eye, and tissue donor, and AB 1268 will help to create more opportunities for donation while giving hope to over 20,000 Californians who are waiting for a life-saving organ.

Facts about donation

  • Over 100,000 Americans are currently waiting for an organ transplant, more than 20,000 live in California. An organ transplant is their only remaining medical option.
  • Sadly, an average of 18 patients die every day while waiting, simply because the organ they needed was not donated in time.
  • 2022 was a groundbreaking year as more than 42,800 organ transplants were performed, and the US surpassed its 1 millionth transplant.

About Donate Life California:

Donate Life California is the nonprofit, state-authorized organ, eye and tissue donor registry. As a public service, the registry assures that all personal information is kept confidential and stored in a secure database, accessible only to authorized organ and tissue recovery personnel at the time of an actual donation opportunity. The registry is administered by Donate Life California and California’s four nonprofit, federally designated organ recovery organizations: Donor Network West, Lifesharing, OneLegacy and Sierra Donor Services. For more information about Donate Life California, please visit www.donateLIFEcalifornia.org or in Spanish at www.doneVIDAcalifornia.org.

Please visit Donate Life California’s Stories of Hope web page to read inspiring stories about organ and tissue donors and recipients from around the state.

27 Sep

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News Press Release

Governor Newsom Signs AB 1374 to Improve DMV Organ Registration Language, Increasing Donors

New Law Strengthens California Department of Motor Vehicles and Donate Life California Partnership

SACRAMENTO, CA, September 22, 2021 – AB 1374 was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom. Sponsored by Assemblymember Kevin Mullin (D-22), AB 1374 is a critical step in the effort to increase the number of registered organ donors in California. The new law creates a pathway to amend the language of the DMV donor registration, in the hopes of encouraging more Californians to say “yes” to organ, eye and tissue donation.
California has the longest transplant waiting list in the country, with more than 20,000 patients currently in need of a lifesaving organ. The partnership between the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and Donate Life California is key to saving lives. Since 2005, the DMV has accounted for more than 95% of the 17.5 million registrations to the Donate Life California organ and tissue registry. Leaders from both organizations hailed the new law as an important turning point.
“We have long enjoyed our partnership with Donate Life California. Our joint efforts have saved many lives,” said Kathleen Webb, DMV Chief Deputy Director. “We look forward to more success registering organ, eye and tissue donors with this new agreement in place.”
“Since the creation of the Donate Life California registry, Californians have taken even greater strides to help save the lives of thousands,” stated Jim Martin, Chief Executive Officer of Donate Life California. “Every Californian has the power to make a difference when they sign up to be an organ, eye, and tissue donor, and we hope our simplified partnership with the DMV helps Californians to understand the importance of that decision.”
“OPOs are proud of their work with Donate Life California and the DMV to pass AB 1374 and increase organ donation,” said Tom Mone, Chair of Donate Life California’s Board of Directors and CEO of OneLegacy, Southern California’s OPO or Organ Procurement Organization. “Our work as OPOs starts with collaboration with all 334 California hospitals who refer potential donors, then by supporting families and donors who choose to leave a life-saving legacy, medically assessing and treating every donor to maximize the number of lives saved and making sure that life-saving organs get to the patients with the greatest need. This cannot happen without advocating for these patients by supporting legislation like AB 1374 and educating communities on the importance of registration, as well as investing in science that improves transplantation, all to fulfill our commitment to advance solutions that save more lives.”
Facts about donation
• In 2020, organ and tissue donors in California saved more than 4,500 lives and improved the quality of life for hundreds of thousands more.
• 18 people across the country die each day awaiting lifesaving organ transplants.
• Approximately 20,000 people in California need a lifesaving organ transplant — approximately 19% of the national transplant waiting list.
About Donate Life California:
Donate Life California is the nonprofit, state-authorized organ, eye and tissue donor registry. As a public service, the registry assures that all personal information is kept confidential and stored in a secure database, accessible only to authorized organ and tissue recovery personnel at the time of an actual donation opportunity. The registry is administered by Donate Life California and California’s four nonprofit, federally designated organ recovery organizations: Donor Network West, Lifesharing, OneLegacy and Sierra Donor Services. For more information about Donate Life California, please visit www.donateLIFEcalifornia.org or in Spanish at www.doneVIDAcalifornia.org.
Please visit Donate Life California’s Stories of Hope web page to read inspiring stories about organ and tissue donors and recipients from around the state.

Contact:
Lacey Wood
Donate Life California
(530) 308-7046 (cell) | (916) 678-6006 (office)
lacey@donateLIFEcalifornia.org

30 Mar

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in
Press Release

This April, Donate More Than Clothes at Goodwill of Orange County Stores — Donate Life

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

For additional information contact:
Nicole Morrison (Goodwill of OC) 562-773-9910
Lacey Wood (Donate Life CA) 916-678-6006
Ingrid Smart (Casanova) 949-300-296

This April, Donate More Than Clothes at Goodwill of Orange County Stores — Donate Life

Donate Life CA and Goodwill of OC Team Up for Innovative Donor Registration Initiative

Santa Ana, CA (April 2, 2021): This April for National Organ Donation Month, you can donate more than clothes and gently used items at Goodwill of Orange County stores – you can donate life. Through an innovative partnership between Donate Life CA and Goodwill of Orange County, all Goodwill shoppers and donors will be given the opportunity to register as organ, eye and tissue donors.

Historically, most people register at the DMV when they get or renew their driver’s license, but this month, they will also be able to easily register as an organ donor when they drop off donations or shop at any Goodwill store in Orange County.

Each day, 20 people in the U.S. die waiting for an organ donation, and there are more than 100,000 people currently waiting for a lifesaving transplant. More than 22,000 people, or 20% of the national waiting list, are right here in California. The program, created by local ad agency Casanova//McCann, aims to significantly increase the number of registered organ donors here in O.C.

“We are excited to be part of this initiative and to use our store and donation sites to change lives in a different way this month,” said Nicole Suydam, President and CEO of Goodwill of Orange County. “On average, we see 90,000 donors in April, so we have a unique opportunity to significantly impact the lives of so many in need.”

“California still lags behind the national average of organ donors and our goal is to close that gap,” Jim Martin, CEO, Donate Life CA said.” We are grateful to partner with Goodwill of Orange County, a respected organization that has given us access to a whole new way to register donors.”

“This is our second initiative for Donate Life CA and our first with Goodwill of Orange County, and we couldn’t be more excited about it,” said Ingrid Otero-Smart, President and CEO, Casanova//McCann. “Last time we increased registrations by 19% and it is our goal to beat that number with this initiative”.

About Goodwill of Orange County
Goodwill of Orange County helps people facing barriers find and keep jobs, which provides purpose, pride, and dignity. Since its inception in 1924, Goodwill has supported hundreds of thousands of individuals through quality training and education programs, supportive employment services for people with developmental and physical disabilities, on-site job coaching, community integration programs, veteran employment services, and more. The nonprofit operates a collection of 25 retail venues throughout Orange County, including five OC Goodwill Boutiques and its ecommerce platform shopgoodwill.com, to support these life-changing programs and services. To learn more about Goodwill of Orange County, visit ocgoodwill.org.

About Donate Life California:

The Donate Life California Organ & Tissue Donor Registry is the nonprofit, state-authorized organ, eye and tissue donor registry. As a public service, the registry assures that all personal information is kept confidential and stored in a secure database, accessible only to authorized organ and tissue recovery personnel at the time of an actual donation opportunity. The registry is administered by Donate Life California and California’s four nonprofit, federally designated organ recovery organizations: Donor Network West, Lifesharing, OneLegacy and Sierra Donor Services. For more information about Donate Life California; how organ, eye and tissue donation saves and improves lives; and to sign up, please visit www.donateLIFEcalifornia.org or in Spanish at www.doneVIDAcalifornia.org.

About Casanova//McCann:

Casanova//McCann is one of the leading Hispanic integrated communications agencies in the U.S. and the most awarded Hispanic agency in Cannes the past two years. Founded in 1984, the company is headquartered in Costa Mesa, CA, with N.Y. and Detroit offices. It handles Hispanic advertising and integrated communications services for Fortune 500 clients like Nestlé, Chevrolet, US Postal Service, Cigna, and Coca-Cola, among others. Casanova has been affiliated with Interpublic Group of Companies since 1999 and became a minority, female-owned, in October 2020. For more information about Casanova//McCann, visit www.Casanova.com.