Office of Minority Health

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.

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/*

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/

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/

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.