England’s organ donation law change: What has been the impact of the new opt-out system?
On Wednesday 7th May 2025, we hosted a webinar with guest speaker Leah McLaughlin about the impact of the new opt-out system of organ donation in England. She discussed what happened when the soft opt-out system of organ donation was implemented in England and what should happen next.
Background
In 2020, a new 'opt out' system of consent to organ donation was introduced in England. This means that all adults aged over 18 years are considered to have consented to organ donation unless they decide to opt-out.
Expectations of the change
People hoped this system would help to make more organs available to those who are on the transplant waiting list by increasing the number of people donating their organs after death. It was intended to make the organ donation process easier, helping to facilitate hundreds of life-saving or life-enhancing transplants every year.
The research
Since the change in 2020, researchers wanted to look at the effects of the new system, specifically on the rates of consent to organ donation after death.
They did this by reviewing parliamentary debates, analysing NHS data, looking at public attitude surveys, interviewing and surveying healthcare professionals, and interviewing those who have been approached about organ donation after someone died.
Expectation versus reality
The expected increase in organ donation has not happened as hoped, many families didn't fully understand the concept of deemed consent, and healthcare professionals found the new system more complex to carry out.
What needs to change?
This research suggests that there needs to be more information available to the public about what this system means, improving public understanding of organ donation. The donation process also needs to be made more simple for both the healthcare professionals and the families involved.
A recording of this webinar will shortly be available on our website.