The German Bundestag has adopted a reform of the regulations governing living organ donation.
The draft law, presented by Federal Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU), was passed on Thursday with the backing of the governing coalition and the Greens. The Left voted against it, while the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) abstained.
Under the new rules, living kidney donations can now be facilitated across two or more different donor‑recipient pairs. A national program for cross‑pair living kidney donation will be established, and the so‑called non‑directed anonymous kidney donation will become possible. The law also strengthens protections for living donors of organs and tissues.
Warken called the reform “a day of hope” for everyone who depends on a life‑saving donor kidney, adding that mismatches in blood groups or tissue markers should no longer prevent a kidney from being donated to a close relative.
