Organ Donation and American Indians/Alaska Natives

Although American Indians and Alaska Natives account for less than 1 percent of patients on the organ transplant waiting list, they suffer from disproportionately high rates of diabetes and heart related diseases. Alcoholism is also prevalent among American Indians/Alaska Natives (AI/AN), and in turn, they face higher rates of cirrhosis and other liver diseases. These conditions are known to put patients at risk for organ failures. In 2019, American Indians/Alaska Natives alone made up 0.9 percent of the national population.

  • The number of organ transplants performed on American Indians/Alaska Natives in 2020 was 30 percent of the number of American Indians/Alaska Natives currently waiting for a transplant. The number of transplants performed on whites was 48.8 percent of the number currently waiting.
  • While about 0.8 percent of the total candidates currently waiting for transplants are American Indian/Alaska Natives, they comprised 0.6 percent of organ donors in 2020.
  • In 2020, 28.8 percent of the organs recovered from American Indians/Alaska Natives came from living donors as compared to 33.4 percent of white living donors.
  • American Indians/Alaska Natives are more likely to develop a case of hepatitis C than the white population, a cause of liver failure.
U.S. Transplant Waiting List – Candidates by Race/Ethnicity
OrganAll Candidates# of AI/AN CandidatesAI/AN % of All Candidates # of White CandidatesWhite % of All Candidates
All Organs106,6669010.843,05440.4
Kidney90,2357920.932,37735.9
Liver11,704940.87,86567.2
Heart3,531110.32,00456.8
Lung92220.266166.6

Source: HRSA. U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). Based on OPTN data as of August 23, 2021.
https://optn.transplant.hrsa.gov/data/view-data-reports/national-data/*

Transplants Performed in the U.S. by Recipient Ethnicity, 2020
NumberPercentage of Total 2020 Transplants
AI/AN 2800.7
White20,99753.8
Total Transplants39,036100

Source: HRSA. U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). Based on OPTN data as of August 23, 2021.
https://optn.transplant.hrsa.gov/data/view-data-reports/national-data/

U.S. Organ Donors Recovered, 2020
Donor Type# of All Donors# of AI/AN Donors% of All AI/AN Donors # of White Donors% of All White Donors
Living5,729220.44,12972.1
Deceased12,588900.78,24965.5
Total18,3171120.612,37867.6

Source: HRSA. U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). Based on OPTN data as of August 23, 2021.
https://optn.transplant.hrsa.gov/data/view-data-reports/national-data/

U.S. Organ Donors Recovered, 2020
Donor Type# of AI/AN Donors% of All AI/AN Donors # of White Donors% of All White Donors
Living2219.64,12933.4
Deceased9080.48,24966.6
Total11210012,378100

Source: HRSA. U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). Based on OPTN data as of August 23, 2021.
https://optn.transplant.hrsa.gov/data/view-data-reports/national-data/

*OPTN data is updated monthly online. The data and statistics for this section will be updated annually.