Top Organ Donor Facts

In Michigan, nearly 3,000 people currently are on the waiting list for a transplant. Fewer than 700 patients will receive transplants; more than 150 will die waiting for one.

Being an organ donor is a simple, selfless act. Anyone can register as a potential donor. A decision on whether your organs are suitable for transplant won't be made until after your death.

There's never a charge to a donor or their family for a donation, nor will donating interfere with having a funeral―and even an open casket.

Top Register Online or In Person

Sign up for the Michigan Organ, Tissue, and Eye Donor Registry online. It's an easy, private, and confidential act.

You also can indicate your wishes with a sticker on the back of your driver license or state-issued ID card. The sticker is available free at Secretary of State branch offices. But that method won't place you on the donor registry―potentially creating a delay after your death.

Both methods allow you to specify which organs or types of tissue you wish to donate.

Top Gift of Life Michigan

Gift of Life Michigan, a nonprofit organization that oversees the registry, helps get information out to potential donors and connects donor hospitals with transplant centers.

The agency urges you to speak with your family about your decision. If you make your wishes clear, confusion and delay will be minimized after your death.

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