I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1520 
To prohibit discrimination on the basis of mental or physical disability in 
cases of organ transplants. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 24, 2025 
Mrs. CAMMACK (for herself, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. ISSA, Ms. WASSERMAN 
SCHULTZ, and Mr. SESSIONS) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To prohibit discrimination on the basis of mental or physical 
disability in cases of organ transplants. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Charlotte Woodward 
Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) AUXILIARY AIDS AND SERVICES.—The term 
‘‘auxiliary aids and services’’ has the meaning given 
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the term in section 4 of the Americans with Disabil-
ities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12103). 
(2) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘‘covered en-
tity’’ means any licensed provider of health care 
services (including licensed health care practitioners, 
hospitals, nursing facilities, laboratories, inter-
mediate care facilities, psychiatric residential treat-
ment facilities, institutions for individuals with intel-
lectual or developmental disabilities, and prison 
health centers), and any transplant hospital (as de-
fined in section 121.2 of title 42, Code of Federal 
Regulations or a successor regulation), that— 
(A) is in interstate commerce; or 
(B) provides health care services in a man-
ner that— 
(i) substantially affects or has a sub-
stantial relation to interstate commerce; or 
(ii) includes use of an instrument (in-
cluding an instrument of transportation or 
communication) of interstate commerce. 
(3) DISABILITY.—The term ‘‘disability’’ has the 
meaning given the term in section 3 of the Ameri-
cans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
12102). 
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(4) HUMAN ORGAN.—The term ‘‘human organ’’ 
has the meaning given the term in section 301(c) of 
the National Organ Transplant Act (42 U.S.C. 
274e(c)). 
(5) ORGAN
TRANSPLANT.—The term ‘‘organ 
transplant’’ means the transplantation or trans-
fusion of a donated human organ into the body of 
another human for the purpose of treating a medical 
condition. 
(6) QUALIFIED INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘quali-
fied individual’’ means an individual who, with or 
without a support network, provision of auxiliary 
aids and services, or reasonable modifications to 
policies or practices, meets eligibility requirements 
for the receipt of a human organ. 
(7) REASONABLE MODIFICATIONS TO POLICIES 
OR PRACTICES.—The term ‘‘reasonable modifications 
to policies or practices’’ includes— 
(A) communication with persons respon-
sible for supporting a qualified individual with 
postsurgical or other care following an organ 
transplant or related services, including support 
with medication; 
(B) consideration, in determining whether 
a qualified individual will be able to comply 
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with health requirements following an organ 
transplant or receipt of related services, of sup-
port networks available to the qualified indi-
vidual, including family, friends, and providers 
of home and community-based services, includ-
ing home and community-based services funded 
through the Medicare or Medicaid program 
under title XVIII or XIX, respectively, of the 
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq., 
1396 et seq.), another health plan in which the 
qualified individual is enrolled, or any program 
or source of funding available to the qualified 
individual; and 
(C) the use of supported decision-making, 
when needed, by a qualified individual. 
(8) RELATED
SERVICES.—The term ‘‘related 
services’’ means services related to an organ trans-
plant that consist of— 
(A) evaluation; 
(B) counseling; 
(C) treatment, including postoperative 
treatment, and care; 
(D) provision of information; and 
(E) any other service recommended or re-
quired by a physician. 
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(9) SUPPORTED DECISION-MAKING.—The term 
‘‘supported decision-making’’ means the use of a 
support person to assist a qualified individual in 
making health care decisions, communicate informa-
tion to the qualified individual, or ascertain a quali-
fied individual’s wishes. Such term includes— 
(A) the inclusion of the individual’s attor-
ney-in-fact or health care proxy, or any person 
of the individual’s choice, in communications 
about the individual’s health care; 
(B) permitting the individual to designate 
a person of the individual’s choice for the pur-
poses of supporting that individual in commu-
nicating, processing information, or making 
health care decisions; 
(C) providing auxiliary aids and services to 
facilitate the individual’s ability to communicate 
and process health-related information, includ-
ing providing use of assistive communication 
technology; 
(D) providing health information to per-
sons designated by the individual, consistent 
with the regulations promulgated under section 
264(c) of the Health Insurance Portability and 
Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 1320d– 
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2 note) and other applicable laws and regula-
tions governing disclosure of health informa-
tion; 
(E) providing health information in a for-
mat that is readily understandable by the indi-
vidual; and 
(F) working with a court-appointed guard-
ian or other person responsible for making 
health care decisions on behalf of the individual, 
to ensure that the individual is included in deci-
sions involving the health care of the individual 
and that health care decisions are in accordance 
with the individual’s own expressed interests. 
(10) SUPPORT NETWORK.—The term ‘‘support 
network’’ means, with respect to a qualified indi-
vidual, 1 or more people who are— 
(A) selected by the qualified individual or 
by the qualified individual and the guardian of 
the qualified individual, to provide assistance to 
the qualified individual or guidance to that 
qualified individual in understanding issues, 
making plans for the future, or making complex 
decisions; and 
(B) who may include the family members, 
friends, unpaid supporters, members of the reli-
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gious congregation, and appropriate personnel 
at a community center, of or serving the quali-
fied individual. 
SEC. 3. PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATORY POLICY. 
The board of directors described in section 
372(b)(1)(B) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
274(b)(1)(B)) shall not issue policies, recommendations, 
or other memoranda that would prohibit, or otherwise 
hinder, a qualified individual’s access to an organ trans-
plant solely on the basis of that individual’s disability. 
SEC. 4. PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), a cov-
ered entity may not, solely on the basis of a qualified indi-
vidual’s disability— 
(1) determine that the individual is ineligible to 
receive an organ transplant or related services; 
(2) deny the individual an organ transplant or 
related services; 
(3) refuse to refer the individual to an organ 
transplant center or other related specialist for the 
purpose of receipt of an organ transplant or other 
related services; or 
(4) refuse to place the individual on an organ 
transplant waiting list. 
(b) EXCEPTION.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.— 
(A) MEDICALLY
SIGNIFICANT
DISABIL-
ITIES.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), a cov-
ered entity may take a qualified individual’s 
disability into account when making a health 
care treatment or coverage recommendation or 
decision, solely to the extent that the disability 
has been found by a physician, following an in-
dividualized evaluation of the potential recipi-
ent, to be medically significant to the receipt of 
the organ transplant or related services, as the 
case may be. 
(B) CONSTRUCTION.—Subparagraph (A) 
shall not be construed to require a referral or 
recommendation for, or the performance of, a 
medically inappropriate organ transplant or 
medically inappropriate related services. 
(2) CLARIFICATION.—If a qualified individual 
has the necessary support network to provide a rea-
sonable assurance that the qualified individual will 
be able to comply with health requirements following 
an organ transplant or receipt of related services, as 
the case may be, the qualified individual’s inability 
to independently comply with those requirements 
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may not be construed to be medically significant for 
purposes of paragraph (1). 
(c) REASONABLE MODIFICATIONS.—A covered entity 
shall make reasonable modifications to policies or practices 
(including procedures) of such entity if such modifications 
are necessary to make an organ transplant or related serv-
ices available to qualified individuals with disabilities, un-
less the entity can demonstrate that making such modi-
fications would fundamentally alter the nature of such 
policies or practices. 
(d) CLARIFICATIONS.— 
(1) NO DENIAL OF SERVICES BECAUSE OF AB-
SENCE
OF
AUXILIARY
AIDS
AND
SERVICES.—For 
purposes of this section, a covered entity shall take 
such steps as may be necessary to ensure that a 
qualified individual with a disability is not denied a 
procedure associated with the receipt of an organ 
transplant or related services, because of the absence 
of auxiliary aids and services, unless the covered en-
tity can demonstrate that taking such steps would 
fundamentally alter the nature of the procedure 
being offered or would result in an undue burden on 
the entity. 
(2) COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAW.—Nothing 
in this section shall be construed— 
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(A) to prevent a covered entity from pro-
viding organ transplants or related services at 
a level that is greater than the level that is re-
quired by this section; or 
(B) to limit the rights of an individual with 
a disability under, or to replace or limit the 
scope of obligations imposed by, the Americans 
with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 
et seq.) including the provisions added to such 
Act by the ADA Amendments Act of 2008, sec-
tion 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 
U.S.C. 794), section 1557 of the Patient Pro-
tection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 
18116), or any other applicable law. 
(e) ENFORCEMENT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Any individual who alleges 
that a qualified individual was subject to a violation 
of this section by a covered entity may bring a claim 
regarding the allegation to the Office for Civil 
Rights of the Department of Health and Human 
Services, for expedited resolution, as appropriate. 
(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 
subsection is intended to limit or replace available 
remedies under the Americans with Disabilities Act 
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of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.) or any other ap-
plicable law. 
SEC. 5. APPLICATION TO EACH PART OF PROCESS. 
The provisions of this Act— 
(1) that apply to an organ transplant, also 
apply to the evaluation and listing of a qualified in-
dividual, and to the organ transplant and post- 
organ-transplant treatment of such an individual; 
and 
(2) that apply to related services, also apply to 
the process for receipt of related services by such an 
individual. 
SEC. 6. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS. 
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to supersede 
any provision of any State or local law that provides great-
er rights to qualified individuals with respect to organ 
transplants than the rights established under this Act. 
Æ 
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