II 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6950 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
SEPTEMBER 26 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 17), 2008 
Received 
AN ACT 
To establish the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Gift of Life Medal 
for organ donors and the family of organ donors. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Stephanie Tubbs Jones Gift of Life Medal Act of 2008’’. 
(b) FINDINGS.—The Congress makes the following 
findings: 
(1) Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones was 
dedicated to eliminating health disparities and pro-
tecting vulnerable populations. 
(2) Through her service on the Committee on 
Ways and Means, Subcommittee on Health, she was 
a strong voice for those who were poor, elderly, ra-
cial and ethnic minorities, and disenfranchised. 
(3) Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones’ 
concern for others was demonstrated by the decision 
to donate her organs, so that as her life ended, the 
lives of others continued. 
(4) There are currently 99,625 candidates for 
organ donation on the national transplant waiting 
list. Every 16 minutes, a new name is added to such 
list. Sixteen persons die each day waiting for a life 
saving organ transplant. 
(5) Minority populations account for nearly 50 
percent of those on the national transplant waiting 
list. 
(6) Diseases that can lead to organ failure, 
such as hypertension and diabetes, are found more 
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frequently in ethnic minority populations than in the 
general population. 
(7) While minorities donate organs in propor-
tion to their population, the rate of organ donations 
fails to keep pace with the need for transplants in 
the population. African-Americans, for example, rep-
resent about 13 percent of the population and 12 
percent of organ donors, but comprise roughly 23 
percent of individuals on national transplant waiting 
list for kidney transplants. 
(8) Transplantation success rates are higher 
when organs are matched between people sharing 
the same racial and ethnic background. 
(9) Because of the disparities in the need for 
organs, minorities are more likely to wait longer to 
find a successful match and are more likely to be 
sicker when an organ is found. 
(10) An increase in minority organ donations 
would decrease the waiting time and increase the 
likelihood of successful transplantations for minori-
ties. 
SEC. 2. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR STEPHANIE 
TUBBS JONES GIFT OF LIFE MEDAL. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the provisions of this 
section and the availability of funds under this Act, any 
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organ donor, or the family of any organ donor, shall be 
eligible for a Stephanie Tubbs Jones Gift of Life Medal 
(hereafter in this Act referred to as a ‘‘medal’’). 
(b) DOCUMENTATION.—The Secretary of Health and 
Human Services shall direct the entity operating the 
Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network to— 
(1) establish an application procedure requiring 
the 
relevant 
organ 
procurement 
organization 
through which an individual or family of the indi-
vidual made an organ donation, to submit to such 
entity documentation supporting the eligibility of the 
individual or the family, respectively, to receive a 
medal; 
(2) determine through the documentation pro-
vided and, if necessary, independent investigation 
whether the individual or family, respectively, is eli-
gible to receive such a medal; and 
(3) arrange for the presentation to the relevant 
organ procurement organization all medals struck 
pursuant to section 4 to individuals or families that 
are determined to be eligible to receive medals. 
(c) LIMITATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), only 1 medal may be presented to a fam-
ily under subsection (b). Such medal shall be pre-
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sented to the donating family member, or in the case 
of a deceased donor, the family member who signed 
the consent form authorizing, or who otherwise au-
thorized, the donation of the organ involved. 
(2) EXCEPTION.—In the case of a family in 
which more than 1 member is an organ donor, a 
medal may be presented for each such organ donor. 
SEC. 3. SOLICITATION OF DONATIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Organ Procurement and 
Transplantation Network may collect funds to offset ex-
penditures relating to the issuance of medals authorized 
under this Act. 
(b) PAYMENT OF FUNDS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), all funds received by the Organ Procure-
ment and Transplantation Network under subsection 
(a) shall be promptly paid by the Organ Procure-
ment and Transplantation Network to the Secretary 
of Health and Human Services for purposes of pur-
chasing medals under this Act for distribution. 
(2) LIMITATION.—Not more than 7 percent of 
any funds received under subsection (a) may be used 
to pay administrative costs, and fundraising costs to 
solicit funds under subsection (a), incurred by the 
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Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network in 
carrying out this Act. 
SEC. 4. DESIGN AND PRODUCTION OF MEDAL. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the provisions of this 
section, the Secretary of the Treasury shall design and 
strike the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Gift of Life Medals, 
each of which shall— 
(1) weigh 250 grams; 
(2) have a diameter of 3 inches; and 
(3) consist of bronze. 
(b) DESIGN.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The design of the medals 
shall commemorate the compassion and courage 
manifested by and the sacrifices made by organ do-
nors and their families, and the medals shall bear 
suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions. 
(2) SELECTION.—The design of medals struck 
under this section shall be— 
(A) selected by the Secretary of the Treas-
ury, in consultation with the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services, the Organ Pro-
curement and Transplantation Network, inter-
ested members of the family of Stephanie 
Tubbs Jones, Dr. William H. Frist, and the 
Commission of Fine Arts; and 
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(B) reviewed by the Citizens Coin Advisory 
Committee. 
(c) NATIONAL MEDALS.—The medals struck pursu-
ant to this section are national medals for purposes of 
chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code. 
(d) STRIKING AND DELIVERY OF MINIMUM-SIZED 
LOTS.—The Secretary of the Treasury shall strike and de-
liver to the Secretary of Health and Human Services no 
fewer than 100 medals at any time pursuant to an order 
by such Secretary. 
(e) COST OF MEDALS.—Medals struck under this sec-
tion and sold to the Secretary of Health and Human Serv-
ices for distribution in accordance with this Act shall be 
sold to the Secretary of Health and Human Services at 
a price sufficient to cover the cost of designing and strik-
ing the medals, including labor, materials, dies, use of ma-
chinery, and overhead expenses. 
(f) NO EXPENDITURES IN ADVANCE OF RECEIPT OF 
FUNDS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Treas-
ury shall not strike or distribute any medals under 
this Act until such time as the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services certifies that sufficient funds 
have been received by such Secretary to cover the 
cost of the medals ordered. 
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(2) DESIGN IN ADVANCE OF ORDER.—Notwith-
standing paragraph (1), the Secretary of the Treas-
ury may begin designing the medal at any time after 
the date of the enactment of this Act and take such 
other action as may be necessary to be prepared to 
strike such medals upon receiving the certification 
described in such paragraph, including preparing 
dies and striking test pieces. 
SEC. 5. MEDALS NOT TREATED AS VALUABLE CONSIDER-
ATION. 
A medal under this Act shall not be treated as valu-
able consideration for purposes of section 301(a) of the 
National Organ Transplant Act (42 U.S.C. 274e(a)). 
SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS. 
For purposes of this Act: 
(1) ORGAN.—The term ‘‘organ’’ has the mean-
ing given such term in section 121.2 of title 42, 
Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date 
of the enactment of this Act. 
(2) ORGAN
PROCUREMENT
ORGANIZATION.— 
The term ‘‘organ procurement organization’’ means 
a qualified organ procurement organization de-
scribed in section 371(b)(1) of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 273(b)(1)). 
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(3) ORGAN
PROCUREMENT
AND
TRANSPLAN-
TATION NETWORK.—The term ‘‘Organ Procurement 
and Transplantation Network’’ means the Organ 
Procurement and Transplantation Network estab-
lished under section 372 of the Public Health Serv-
ice Act (42 U.S.C. 274). 
Passed the House of Representatives September 25, 
2008. 
Attest: 
LORRAINE C. MILLER, 
Clerk. 
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