‘Pretty amazing things’: Indiana sees steady rise in organ donations since 2016

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) — Indiana reached a new record in organ donations in 2024, continuing a trend the state has seen since 2016, according to Indiana Donor Network.

The organization — which coordinates donations and transplants for organs, tissues and corneas — reported that Indiana transplanted 1,388 organs in 2024, which resulted in 1,216 lives being saved.

The number represents a 22.4% increase from 2023, and the organization has established a new benchmark in organ transplants for nine consecutive years.

• 2016 – 606 transplants
• 2017 – 620 transplants
• 2018 – 634 transplants
• 2019 – 665 transplants
• 2020 – 857 transplants
• 2021 – 932 transplants
• 2022 – 972 transplants
• 2023 – 1,134 transplants

“I’m always shocked to see when we transplant so many organs into various people because I’ve been doing this for almost 25 years … I remember years when we were only transplanting 300 organs,” said Kellie Tremain, president and CEO of Indiana Donor Network.

Tremain attributed the growth in donations to a variety of factors, including Indiana Donor Network being able to expand its outreach and inform more Hoosiers about the benefits of being an organ donor.

“Now, more than 4.6 million people in Indiana are signed up to be donors, so pretty amazing things,” Tremain said.

Tremain also believes the topic being perceived as somewhat taboo, along with prior misconceptions of being an organ donor, have dwindled significantly during her time with Indiana Donor Network, which has also contributed to the rise in donations.

While not everyone is willing to become an organ donor, Tremain said most families are at least knowledgeable about the process and making informed decisions.

“Now, what we’re seeing is we’ve done such a good job of educating the public that people are making conscious decisions to be donors or not to be donors,” Tremain said. “When we go to talk to a family, instead of saying those myths, they’re just saying ‘we’ve had this conversation’ and they didn’t want to be a donor.”

In addition to facilitating donations and transplants, Indiana Donor Network also provides programs, grief and counseling services for family members of organ donors.

Hoosiers can become an organ donor through a multitude of methods:

• Conducting business at the BMV
• Applying for a fishing or hunting license
• Signing up online at DonateLifeIndiana.org
• Using the “Health” app on Apple devices
• Going through the state’s Professional Licensing Agency

Tremain also said anyone can sign up to be an organ donor despite age and medical history.

“We never want anyone to rule themselves out for organ or tissue donation … we’re evaluating every patient and their medical history as they come,” Tremain said.

According to data from the Health Resources & Services Administration, more than 103,000 Americans are on the national transplant waiting list, and another person is added to the list every eight minutes.