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Public Citizen's landmark analysis documented that PhRMA and 31 member companies provided at least $6 billion in grants to more than 20,000 organizations over 12 years — dwarfing their federal lobbying and campaign contributions combined. Organizations receiving these funds were significantly less likely to support drug pricing reform legislation that would benefit their own patient constituencies.

An HHS investigation into an OPO serving Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia found at least 28 patients may not have been deceased at the time of organ preparation, with 73 patients showing neurological signs incompatible with donation between December 2024 and February 2025. CMS announced "major reforms" including an independent oversight board and a direct patient reporting channel.

Despite a fifth consecutive record year, 104,000 Americans remain on the waiting list and 17 people die daily. UNOS is calling on Congress to mandate automated donor referrals, in-cabin airline organ transport, and a national organ tracking system.

Pfizer, Novo Nordisk, and AstraZeneca poured €110 million into patient advocacy organizations across Europe in 2022 alone. One researcher summarized the mechanism: "Patient groups are better marketing managers than pharma companies because they are seen as neutral or objective."

The AKF's publicly disclosed sponsor list includes DaVita, Fresenius Medical Care, AstraZeneca, Amgen, GlaxoSmithKline, Akebia, Alnylam, Otsuka, Cara Therapeutics, Horizon Therapeutics, and more than 20 additional pharmaceutical and dialysis corporations whose practices directly control the lives of the kidney patients AKF claims to represent.

Fresenius Medical Care North America, the world's largest dialysis provider, contributed over $1.8 million to the NKF across two years as National Presenting Sponsor of the NKF Kidney Walk. The NKF simultaneously receives funding from Amgen, AstraZeneca, DaVita, and dozens of other pharmaceutical and dialysis corporations.

The Global Observatory on Donation and Transplantation's 2024 report documents a record 173,727 solid organ transplants worldwide — a 2% global increase driven largely by donations after circulatory death, which accounted for 28% of all deceased donation activity. Major challenges persist including continued organ shortage and pronounced geographic disparities in transplant access.

Following years of congressional scrutiny, HRSA assumed full management of the OPTN website from UNOS in December 2025. A Senate HELP Committee hearing on the future of the OPTN was held December 11, 2025. Care partner representation remained absent from the witness list — zero care partners testified before the committee governing the system that requires their labor.