Today, the National Kidney Registry (NKR) announced the expansion of its Donor Shield program, increasing the maximum reimbursement for travel and dependent care reimbursement from $5,000 to $6,000 per donor and adding reimbursement for meals.
The $6,000 maximum reimbursement applies to travel, lodging, and meal expenses related to kidney donation for the donor and a caregiver, as well as dependent care costs for children or adult dependents of the donor. Any donor who donates on or after November 1, 2023, is eligible for the increased travel and dependent care maximum reimbursement under the Donor Shield program.
The increase in the travel and dependent care reimbursement allowance brings the total Donor Shield maximum reimbursement to $18,000 per donor: up to $12,000 for lost wage reimbursement and up to $6,000 for travel and dependent care reimbursement. The maximum Donor Shield reimbursement is three times higher than the government-sponsored program, which limits the maximum donor reimbursement to $6,000.
“We are thrilled to offer NKR donors additional reimbursement opportunities through the comprehensive Donor Shield program,” said Michael Lollo, the National Kidney Registry’s Chief Strategy Officer and living kidney donor. “With the increased allowance for travel, lodging, and dependent care and the addition of meals to the covered expenses, Donor Shield has eliminated, to the maximum extent possible, all disincentives to living donation.”
“Living donors are performing an amazingly generous act in giving someone the gift of health and longer life, and we want to ensure they are not burdened with any costs in the process of giving that gift,” said Garet Hil, National Kidney Registry Founder and CEO and living kidney donor. “Not only is it the right thing to do for living donors but it also increases the number of potential donors because it eliminates barriers that would historically prevent someone from donating a kidney.”
About Donor Shield
Donor Shield (www.donor-shield.org) is the most comprehensive program in the world supporting and protecting living kidney donors. Donor Shield is backed by the National Kidney Registry, which is the largest paired exchange program in the world. All donors that participate in a National Kidney Registry swap, Kidney for Life direct donation or donate at a Donor Shield Direct Center are automatically enrolled in the Donor Shield program.
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