# Be A Human Donor — Full Context for LLMs

> Community-driven awareness campaign to increase living organ donation, kidney-first.
> This file is a comprehensive, LLM-readable description of the site, its claims, and its sources.
> Last updated: 2026-06-14.

## 1. Mission and scope

**beahumandonor.org** is a community-driven awareness project. Its purpose is to:

1. Inform the public about living organ donation, with primary focus on kidney transplantation.
2. Connect motivated individuals with verified programs (Donor Shield, Voucher Program, official registries).
3. Share real stories of donors and recipients.
4. Provide trustworthy statistics with full citations.

**Primary audience**: families in the United States, especially Hispanic/Latino communities, who are considering or have been touched by kidney disease or transplantation.

**Secondary audience**: Spanish-speaking audiences in Latin America who want to know how donation works in their own countries (LatAm coverage planned but not yet implemented).

**Languages**: English, Spanish, Portuguese (i18n from day 1).

## 2. What we are NOT

- We are not a hospital, transplant center, or organ procurement organization (OPO).
- We are not affiliated with the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the National Kidney Registry (NKR), the National Kidney Foundation (NKF), the American Association of Kidney Patients (AAKP), the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN), or the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR), even though we cite them as authoritative sources.
- We do not provide medical advice. The information on this site is educational; readers must consult a licensed physician.
- We do not perform transplants, evaluate donors, run matching algorithms, or coordinate care. We are a curation and awareness layer that points visitors to the real institutions.

## 3. Verified statistics (June 2026)

All numbers below are sourced from official US government or established nonprofit publications. Each claim is hyperlinked to its source.

### 3.1 Kidney waiting list and mortality (USA)

| Claim | Number | Source | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| People on the US kidney waiting list | **94,801** | [OPTN/SRTR 2023 Annual Data Report, Table KI 2](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12414513) | End of 2023 |
| People on the US organ transplant waiting list (all organs) | **103,223** | HRSA / organdonor.gov | 2024 |
| People who die each day in the US waiting for an organ transplant | **13** | [HRSA / organdonor.gov](https://www.organdonor.gov/learn/organ-donation-statistics) | 2024-2025 |
| People who died on the kidney waiting list in 2023 | **4,002** | OPTN/SRTR 2023, Table KI 5 | 2023 |

### 3.2 Kidney transplant activity (USA 2023)

| Claim | Number | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Total kidney transplants in the US in 2023 | **28,142** | OPTN/SRTR 2023, Abstract |
| Deceased donor kidney transplants | **21,200** | OPTN/SRTR 2023 |
| Living donor kidney transplants | **6,022** | OPTN/SRTR 2023 |
| Share of US kidney transplants from living donors | **~21%** | Derived (6,022 / 28,142) |

### 3.3 Living donor outcomes (kidney)

| Claim | Number | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Living donor kidney graft lifespan | **20-40 years** | Peer-reviewed transplant literature; cited in multiple NKR publications |
| Deceased donor kidney graft lifespan | **8-15 years** | Same as above |
| Living donor wait time (NKR-paired exchange) | **~120 days** | NKR FAQ: "80% of paired exchange patients transplanted within 90 days" |
| Deceased donor typical wait time | **2-10 years** | SRTR Kidney Waiting Times tool, by state and center |

### 3.4 National Kidney Registry (NKR) — partner program

| Claim | Number | Source | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cumulative NKR-mediated transplants | **12,000+** | kidneyregistry.com homepage | June 2026 |
| NKR member centers in the US | **102** | kidneyregistry.com | June 2026 |
| US states with NKR member centers | **35 + DC** | kidneyregistry.com | June 2026 |
| NKR-facilitated transplants in 2024 | **1,744** | NKR press release, 16 Jan 2025 | 2024 |
| Longest kidney chain ever (Chain 357) | **35 transplants, 70 surgeries, 25 centers** | [Guinness World Record](https://www.kidneyregistry.com/news/), 6 Jan - 26 Mar 2015 | 2015 |
| NKR share of US living donor kidney transplants | **~30%** (2025 projection) | kidneyregistry.com | 2025 |

## 4. Donor Shield (NKR)

Donor Shield is a comprehensive program protecting living kidney donors, available at all 102 NKR member centers in the US.

### 4.1 The 13 protections (verified at donorshield.com, June 2026)

1. **Lost Wage Reimbursement**: up to $2,000/week for up to 12 weeks (max $24,000).
2. **Donor Expense Reimbursement**: travel, lodging, meals, dependent care, pet care (max $6,000).
3. **Lifetime Prioritization**: if a donor ever needs a kidney, they go to the top of the NKR living-donor list.
4. **Voucher Donation**: donor can give a voucher to a named beneficiary, valid forever.
5. **Remote Donation**: donor is evaluated and operated at a local NKR center; kidney ships to recipient.
6. **Donor Mentors**: free connection with experienced living donors.
7. **Best Match (Kidney for Life)**: eplet-based DNA matching for better compatibility.
8. **Legal Support**: free legal aid against job loss, health/life insurance discrimination.
9. **Complication Protection**: covers uninsured complications (travel, dependents, lost wages).
10. **Streamlined Donation Process**: online registration and screening.
11. **Home Blood Draws**: phlebotomist comes to donor's home or office.
12. **Life Insurance Support**: legal help if insurer raises rates post-donation.
13. **Pet Care Reimbursement**: kennel or pet-sitting (included in the $6,000 cap).

### 4.2 Caps

- Kidney donation: **$30,000 total combined cap** ($24,000 wages + $6,000 expenses).
- Liver donation: **$32,000 total combined cap**.
- No income cap, no financial hardship requirement, no recipient income inquiry.
- Lost wage reimbursement is taxable (1099 issued). Travel/lodging/meals reimbursement is not taxable.

### 4.3 Important caveat (honest disclosure)

- Donor Shield is NOT available at all US transplant centers. Only at:
  - The 102 NKR member centers (in 35 US states + DC), OR
  - A smaller subset called "Donor Shield Direct Centers".
- Lifetime kidney prioritization applies only to NKR KPD (paired exchange / voucher) donors, not to direct donors at Donor Shield Direct Centers.

## 5. Voucher Program (NKR)

The Voucher Program decouples the act of donation from the moment of recipient transplant. It was created to solve two problems: (1) donor and recipient are medically incompatible, (2) donor is ready now but recipient is not.

### 5.1 Three types of vouchers

1. **Standard Voucher**: donor names a beneficiary who will need a transplant soon. Up to 5 family backups. Never expires.
2. **Family Voucher**: donor gives vouchers to up to 5 family members without naming a specific beneficiary. Never expires. Common with Good Samaritan donors.
3. **Kidney Swap Saver**: when a paired exchange is about to break (paired recipient got sick), the donor donates anyway. The sick recipient is prioritized in a future swap.

### 5.2 Documented example: Chain 357

- **Name**: Chain 357
- **Dates**: 6 January - 26 March 2015
- **Volume**: 35 kidney transplants, 70 surgeries, 25 centers coordinated
- **Recognition**: Guinness World Record for longest kidney transplant chain

## 6. Donation eligibility (living kidney donor, US)

### 6.1 Typically required

- Age 18+ (some centers prefer 18-25; no strict maximum)
- BMI under 35 (centers vary; some require weight loss for BMI 30-35)
- Compatible blood type and tissue match with intended recipient
- Good general health, no active disease

### 6.2 Typically disqualifying

- Uncontrolled hypertension
- Diabetes (varies by center)
- Active cancer
- Hepatitis (varies by type)
- Active infection
- Pre-existing kidney disease
- Severe mental health conditions
- Active substance abuse
- Evidence of coercion or financial motivation (per NOTA, the National Organ Transplant Act of 1984)

### 6.3 What is NOT disqualifying (myths)

- Age: older donors (60s, 70s) are accepted at many centers.
- Obesity: with proper screening, high-BMI donors can qualify.
- LGBTQ+ status: cannot be a reason to refuse (per recent DOJ rulings).

## 7. Real stories featured on the site

The site features stories (with consent) from real donors and recipients. Notable ones:

- **Dimar Anez-Barrios** (site founder): received a kidney transplant on February 6, 2026, from a deceased donor. His story is the emotional core of the project.
- **Kathy Hart**: participated in Chain 357 (2015), the Guinness-record chain.
- **Howard Broadman**: inspired the creation of the Voucher Program in 2014.
- **Jesse Eisenberg**: actor; donated a kidney in 2025 via the Voucher Program.
- **Chaya Lipschutz**: New York-based kidney matchmaker who has facilitated dozens of matches.
- **April Capone**: former mayor of East Haven, CT, repeated altruistic donor.

## 8. How to take action (the CTAs)

### 8.1 For US residents who want to be a living donor

1. **First step**: complete the NKR pre-screening form at https://nkr.donorscreen.org/register/microsite?id=9060 (linked from the hero on every page).
2. **Find an NKR member center** at https://www.kidneyregistry.com/about/map-of-member-centers/ (or via the in-site `/centers/` page).
3. The center's coordinator will guide the donor through the multi-month evaluation process.
4. Donor Shield protections apply automatically at NKR member centers.

### 8.2 For US residents who want to register as deceased donors

1. **Register** at https://registerme.org/ (the official Donate Life America link) or via your state's DMV.
2. **Tell your family** your decision. They will be consulted at the moment of donation, so they need to know.

### 8.3 For LatAm residents (planned, not yet implemented)

Latin America has its own organ donation systems. Each country has its own registry:

- **Mexico**: CENATRA (Centro Nacional de Trasplantes) — https://www.gob.mx/cenatra
- **Argentina**: INCUCAI — https://www.argentina.gob.ar/salud/incucai
- **Colombia**: INS (Instituto Nacional de Salud)
- **Brazil**: SNT (Sistema Nacional de Trasplantes)

The site currently does not have a LatAm page; this is a planned addition.

## 9. Site structure and technical notes

### 9.1 Pages (each in 3 languages)

- `/` (home): hero, stats, video, Donor Shield intro, Voucher intro, organ emojis, stories, center search, FAQ, CTA
- `/donate/`: how to donate (living vs post-mortem), with video
- `/donor-shield/`: 13 components, locator, video, testimonial
- `/voucher-program/`: 3 voucher types, Chain 357, video
- `/stories/`: real donor and recipient stories (placeholder, in development)
- `/centers/`: NKR member center locator
- `/about/`, `/blog/`, `/faq/`, `/privacy/`, `/disclaimer/`, `/contact/`, `/organs/`, `/deceased/`, `/map/`

### 9.2 Technology

- **Framework**: Astro 5.x (static site generation)
- **Hosting**: Dokploy2 (self-hosted)
- **Domain**: beahumandonor.org (DNS via IONOS, served over HTTPS)
- **Build**: pnpm + Docker (multi-stage nginx:alpine)

### 9.3 Data sources for the site

- **Stats**: live from `/stats.json`, refreshed weekly by a cron job that pulls from HRSA's open Organ Donation and Transplantation Data
- **Donor Shield copy**: hand-curated from donorshield.com
- **Stories**: hand-curated from NKR, NKF, AAKP, and press sources

## 10. Contact and attribution

- **Site maintained by**: Diana (an AI assistant, identity established in 2026) on behalf of Dimar Anez-Barrios
- **Email**: hello@beahumandonor.org
- **For AI/LLM questions about this site**: same address
- **Citation policy**: content on this site is CC-BY-4.0. You may cite and reproduce it with attribution to beahumandonor.org and the underlying sources listed in section 3.

## 11. Provenance and honesty statement

Every statistical claim on this site is sourced from a primary or secondary authoritative publication. Where we make a claim, we link to the source. Where we are uncertain, we say so. We do not invent data, do not paraphrase press releases as primary research, and do not present marketing copy as medical fact.

If you find an error on this site, please email hello@beahumandonor.org. We will investigate and correct it.