Richmond organ transplant contractor furloughs more than 90 employees due to government shutdown

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Richmond-based nonprofit United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), which is federally contracted to oversee organ transplants in the U.S., has furloughed 90 employees due to the federal government shutdown.

In a social media post on Wednesday, Oct. 8, UNOS, which operates the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN), said it has been affected by a federal government shutdown for the first time.

When 8News asked UNOS for insight as to what makes this shutdown different, as it's impacting the OPTN for the first time, a nonprofit spokesperson said UNOS did not know why.

In a statement shared with 8News on Thursday, Oct. 9, the nonprofit said that it has furloughed more than 90 employees beginning this week.

The nonprofit said this comes due to two financial constraints -- the first being indications from the government that it would not pay for the salaries of employees whose roles are primarily tied to the OPTN, and the second being that the government reportedly owes UNOS several months' worth of reimbursement of more than $10 million for OPTN-related work dating back to 2024 that the nonprofit has already completed.

In addition, the nonprofit was reportedly directed by the Health and Human Services Department to pause "much of its critical work," including some committee work that affects organ allocation and patient care.

UNOS said it continues to operate the organ matching system and patient services line, and to address the safety of patients, but the pause on much of its work, along with the expiration of the nonprofit's contract extension on Dec. 29, reportedly creates uncertainty.

"The furloughs of employees whose primary role is to run the day-to-day operations of the OPTN combined with the December 29 expiration of UNOS’ contract extension to support OPTN work, creates an uncertain and untenable environment for donation and transplant," UNOS said in the statement.

The nonprofit urged lawmakers to act quickly to restore funding and allow OPTN operations to fully resume.

"We urge lawmakers to come to a swift resolution on funding to allow the federal government to reopen and the work of the OPTN to be reinstated in order to maintain patient safety and the integrity of the system," the nonprofit said. "Patients’ lives depend on it."

Over 100,000 people in the U.S. are waiting for an organ transplant, according to data from the Health Resources and Services Administration.

The following is the full statement UNOS provided to 8News:

The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) is deeply committed to ensuring the U.S. organ donation and transplant network is safe, operating efficiently, and is doing everything possible to facilitate lifesaving transplants for people in need. UNOS has served for decades as the primary contractor for the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) and it’s our unique honor to facilitate this lifesaving work.

For the first time ever during a federal government shutdown, UNOS, in its capacity as an OPTN contractor, has been directed by the government to pause much of the vitally important OPTN work. The OPTN has never before been affected by a shutdown.

UNOS, as an OPTN contractor, has been directed by the government to continue to operate the organ matching system and the patient services line and to address critical patient-safety matters during this shutdown. But much of the rest of the OPTN work was ordered to be paused, including many OPTN committee meetings, which are now being routinely canceled. This committee work impacts patient care and access and includes work on matters such as organ allocation and multi-organ transplantation.

As a private, non-profit organization, UNOS is not in a position to continue funding the salaries of employees whose roles are primarily tied to the OPTN when the government has indicated it will not cover those costs. Additionally, the government owes UNOS several months’ worth of reimbursement, in excess of $10 million, for OPTN-related work dating back to 2024 that has already been completed by UNOS. Given these financial constraints, UNOS has had to make the difficult decision to furlough more than 90 employees starting this week.

The furloughs of employees whose primary role is to run the day-to-day operations of the OPTN combined with the December 29 expiration of UNOS’ contract extension to support OPTN work, creates an uncertain and untenable environment for donation and transplant. And for that, all Americans should be concerned.

We urge lawmakers to come to a swift resolution on funding to allow the federal government to reopen and the work of the OPTN to be reinstated in order to maintain patient safety and the integrity of the system. Patients’ lives depend on it.