Living kidney donations in Germany will soon be possible “across” two different couples. The federal cabinet approved a corresponding draft law on Wednesday. Until now, couples in which one partner wished to donate a kidney to the other but could not do so due to incompatibility were only allowed to make a “cross” donation with another couple if there was a close relationship between the pairs, for example, if they were related. This requirement for a “close relationship” is now set to be removed.
This would significantly expand the circle of recipients and donors. According to the draft bill, the donation is to be organized by the transplant centers. There are also plans to establish a “national program for cross-over living kidney donation.” “Cross-over living kidney donation strengthens the conscious decision to donate organs,” explained Federal Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU). Instead of family ties, the focus will be on the willingness to donate organs.
The governing coalition also wants to enable so-called non-directed anonymous kidney donation. This would allow people in Germany to donate a kidney without knowing who it would go to. This option has long been available in countries such as the US.
The federal government is responding to the ongoing shortage of donor organs with these changes. At the end of 2024, around 6,400 people classified as eligible for transplantation were waiting for a new kidney. At the same time, only around 2,000 kidneys were transplanted in the same year. The traffic light coalition had therefore already introduced a draft bill in mid-2024. However, this did not reach the Bundestag, partly because the coalition broke up in November last year.
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