National Kidney Registry, Donate Life America Announce First Living Kidney Donation Made Possible Through New Partnership

GREENWICH, Conn., June 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Kidney Registry (NKR) and Donate Life America (DLA) announced today the first living kidney donation resulting from their partnership in the Donate Life Living Donor Pathway. This milestone marks meaningful progress in the shared effort to remove barriers to living kidney donation and expand access to lifesaving organs.

The milestone donation took place at Hartford Hospital Transplant Center, a member center of the National Kidney Registry. The successful transplant serves as a proof of concept for this new integration and demonstrates that providing clear, supported pathways can lead directly to lifesaving outcomes

"Living donor kidneys are available sooner and last longer in patients. This innovative partnership between DLA and NKR means that more people in need will be able to receive kidneys from living donors," said Kari Rancourt, a living donor transplant coordinator at Hartford Hospital.

Currently, more than 90,000 people in the United States are waiting for a donor kidney. Through this partnership, individuals registering as organ, eye and tissue donors in the National Donate Life Registry are now offered a direct, seamless pathway to also sign up as potential living kidney donors. If they choose to be a living donor, NKR is there to support them every step of the way, providing information, peer-to-peer support, and financial protections so they can donate with confidence.

"Every day, generous people sign up to be organ, eye and tissue donors, and that spirit of giving is something we never take for granted," said David Fleming, President and CEO of Donate Life America. "Our partnership with NKR was built on a simple idea: give more people a direct pathway to help save lives through living kidney donation. This partnership aims to help the more than 90,000 people waiting for a donor kidney. We are proud to reach this first milestone of making living donation more accessible."

"The NKR and DLA teams are thrilled to see the first kidney donation in our partnership, which will significantly improve a patient's life while facilitating a great act of kindness by a living donor," said Garet Hil, founder and CEO of the National Kidney Registry.

The partnership, which was formed in November 2025, builds on the success of DLA's National Donate Life Registry, which has inspired millions of people to register as organ, eye and tissue donors, and NKR's position as the world's largest paired exchange organization, having facilitated more than 12,000 living kidney donation transplants.

About the NKR - kidneyregistry.com

About Donate Life America – donatelife.net

Donate Life America is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with a mission to educate, inspire and activate the public to say yes to registering their decision to be an organ, eye and tissue donor.

DLA owns, manages and promotes Donate Life℠, the national logo and brand for the cause of donation; motivates the public to register as organ, eye and tissue donors; provides education about living donation; manages the National Donate Life Registry at RegisterMe.org and the Donate Life Living Donor Pathway; and develops and executes effective multi-media campaigns to promote donation.

SOURCE Donate Life America