Posted on 06/09/2025 9:11:52 AM PDT by Miami Rebel
But the investigation found that the organization’s employees repeatedly pressured families to authorize donation, improperly took over cases from doctors and tried to push hospital staff to remove life support and allow for surgery even if there were indications of growing awareness in patients.
Some employees failed to recognize that hospital sedatives or illegal drugs could mask patients’ neurological condition, meaning they might be in better shape than they seemed.
In December 2022, a 50-year-old overdose victim began stirring less than an hour after being taken off life support and started looking around. The retrieval attempt was not immediately ended, nor was the patient given any explanation.
“The patient had no idea what was going on but was becoming more aware by the minute,” records noted.
After 40 more minutes — when the patient’s organs would no longer qualify for donation — the attempt was called off, and he was moved to an intensive care unit. He later sat up and spoke with his family before dying three days later, the investigation found.
Overall, the investigation flagged 103 cases as having “concerning features” and said problems were more likely to occur at rural hospitals. It noted more than half of transplants arranged by the Kentucky organization were from circulatory-death patients, above the national average.
Nationwide, officials recovered about 20,000 organs from this type of donor last year, nearly double the total in 2021, according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, which oversees the transplant system.
Federal regulators told the network last week that the Kentucky organization must increase training for staff and conduct neurological assessments on potential organ donors every 12 hours, among other changes.
On Thursday, the organization said it had received a report about the government investigation. “We will fully comply with all of their suggested recommendations,” it said in a statement.
The federal inquiry began last fall after a congressional committee heard testimony about the Kentucky man, Anthony Thomas Hoover II, who had an overdose in 2021. He was unresponsive for two days before his family agreed to donate his organs.
Over the next two days, the procurement organization moved toward surgery even as his neurological condition improved, the investigation found. During one exam, records show, he was “thrashing on the bed.” He was sedated to prevent further motion.
The hospital staff “was extremely uncomfortable with the amount of reflexes patient is exhibiting,” case notes read. “Hospital staff kept stating that this was euthanasia.” A procurement organization coordinator assured them it was not.
When Mr. Hoover was taken for the retrieval, records show, he cried, pulled his knees to his chest and shook his head. A hospital doctor refused to withdraw life support. Mr. Hoover eventually recovered. Now 36, he has lingering neurological injuries.
In interviews with The Times, two former employees of the procurement organization said higher-ups tried to pressure the doctor to continue the retrieval attempt. “If it had not been for that physician, we absolutely 1,000 percent would have moved forward,” said one of them, Natasha Miller, who was in the room. Three other former Kentucky employees said they had seen similar cases.
The investigation did not say if there was pressure on doctors who treated Mr. Hoover. Network for Hope did not respond to a request for comment on that case.
The Kentucky attorney general’s office also launched an investigation into Mr. Hoover’s case. On Thursday, the office said the review was ongoing.
I gave a kidney 4+ years ago, so I’m a big advocate of organ donation. I follow news about it pretty closely.
This has to be the weirdest and most ghoulish story I’ve ever read regarding the subject.
Huge respect to you!
It’s one thing to voluntarily give a kidney, and quite another to be put in a position such as the article describes, which is why, as a retired RN, I am NOT an organ donor.
I get doing that voluntarily, and applaud you.
The problem is this is a huge profit center for hospitals and doctors.
And they cannot be trusted; Covid confirmed that.
The headline is a perfect example caused by the indiscriminate use of
“they.”
It’s odd that you can’t sell your own organs, but a hospital can sell your organs for their profit.
“I’m not dead yet!”
This kind of chit is why i took ‘donor’ status off my DL.
Amen!
I am NOT an organ donor because I don’t want anyone over eager to “call it” in the E.R. and start distributing spare parts before I’m done using them. This is nothing new I’ve held that position for 40 years at least.
“I don’t want to get on the cart”.
Ok course they WANT to KILL AMERICANS. Especially if they are to go to an ILLEGAL ALIEN.
This is not a Monty Python skit?
This 👆
Trained in China?
“I’m gettin’ better”
I’ve heard other horror stories like this. I will never donate my organs.
Looks like we are adopting the Chinese social model.
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