1. The National Organ Transplantation Act of 1984 created the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN), which matches donors to recipients. The OPTN is managed under the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), which is a private nonprofit under contract with the federal government. OPTN created OPOs, which are private nonprofits and are the only organizations allowed under federal law to recover organs for transplant. OPOs themselves are governed by OPTN policy, are subject to oversight by UNOS, and must meet specific federal qualifications to receive reimbursement for their services from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Association of Organ Procurement Organizations. About OPOS. 2017. http://www.aopo.org/about-opos/ . Accessed 12 Mar 2017.
2. Kamath PS, Kim W. The model for end‐stage liver disease (MELD). Hepatology. 2007;45(3):797–805.
3. Maps of each model -- the existing 11 districts and the proposed 8 districts -- can be found on pages 3 and 6 respectively of the OPTN UNOS Redesigning Liver Distribution report of the OPTN/UNOS Liver and Intestinal Organ Transplantation Committee. OPTN/UNOS Liver and Intestinal Organ Transplantation Committee. Redesigning Liver Distribution. Report of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. 2016. https://optn.transplant.hrsa.gov/governance/public-comment/redesigning-liver-distribution/ . Accessed 13 Feb 2017.
4. National Organ Transplant Act. 42 USC 274 Sec. 372 (b)(2) (Establishing the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, to create a national list of people in need of organs and a national system to match organs to those in need)
5. Axelrod DA, Vagefi PA, Roberts JP. The evolution of organ allocation for liver transplantation: tackling geographic disparity through broader sharing. Ann Surg. 2015;262:224–7.