On behalf of the transplant community, the American Society of Transplantation (AST) along with the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS), the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO), and the Organization for Transplant Professionals (NATCO), sent a joint letter to the Honorable Howard Koh.

The letter expresses the community's concerns about the PHS Guideline for Reducing HIV/HBV/HCV Transmission along with the process used to develop it. The Societies requested revising the draft guideline prior to publication in the Federal Register or at the very least, prior to publication in final form, to achieve a more reasonable balance of the need to prevent disease transmission against the need to maximize the availability of organs for transplantation. A copy of the letter that was sent to Secretary Koh can be read here.

Additionally the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released the draft of the PHS Guideline for public comment. The deadline for comments is November 21, 2011 and anyone involved in transplantation is encouraged to comment on the guideline. The guidelines can be found at: http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=CDC-2011-0011-0001. The AST will be submitting a response on behalf of the Society.