HARRY HUGHES, Governor                                    3835

RESOLVED, That any reference in this Joint Resolution to
Article 40 of the Annotated Code of Maryland should be construed
as a reference to the respective provision of the State
Government Article upon the passage of Senate Bill 50 of 1984;
and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Chief Clerk of the House of Delegates and
the Secretary of the Senate of Maryland, respectively, should
insert the State Government Article references in the appropriate
places in the 1985 Rules of the House of Delegates and of the
Senate of Maryland.

Signed May 15, 1984.

No. 18

(House Joint Resolution No. 10)

A House Joint Resolution concerning

Anatomical Gifts - Uniform Donor Cards

FOR the purpose of encouraging health insurance providers and
private agencies to issue Uniform Donor Cards, pursuant to
the provisions of the Maryland Anatomical Gift Act, to
potential organ donors.

WHEREAS, More than 25,000 Americans receive a transplant of
some body part every year, including approximately 20,000 cornea
transplants, 5,000 kidney transplants, and 100 heart transplants;
and

WHEREAS, Of the estimated 20,000 potential organ donors who
die in United States hospitals annually, organs are obtained from
less than 4,000 donors; and

WHEREAS, There are presently 3,500 Americans waiting for
cornea transplants, 6,700 require kidney transplants, 2,000 are
in need of heart transplants, and 100, including 40 children,
await liver transplants that they must have in order to survive;
and

WHEREAS, Although there are presently 110 regional organ
procurement programs in the United States linking local hospitals
with major organ transplant centers, time remains a critical
factor when a donated organ becomes available; now, therefore, be
it

RESOLVED, That the General Assembly strongly encourages both
health insurance providers and private agencies to issue Uniform
Donor Cards, pursuant to the provisions of the Maryland
Anatomical Gift Act, to potential donors in order to prevent