The decision to become a living kidney donor is a highly personal one. While this amazing, life-saving gift brings tremendous satisfaction in and of itself, the Alliance for Paired Kidney Donation wants to ensure potential donors have no barriers to their ability to donate. The APKD software only works with dedicated and willing kidney donors, which is why we offer the APKD Donor Protection Program. What Is the APKD Donor Protection Program? At APKD, we believe kidney donation is such an amazing gift, the process should be free to the donor. You are volunteering to give up something from your own body in order to save another person’s life, and that means you should not have to shoulder financial penalties on top of the physical challenges of the surgery. Yet the cost kidney donors face can be quite high, especially when you consider the financial implications of travel and time off of work. This is why we created the Donor Protection Program. The APKD Donor Protection Program covers many of the financial concerns a potential donor may face. These concerns include:

• Compensation for lost wages
• Reimbursement for travel
• Insurance for life and potential complications

With this protection in place, non-directed donors can focus on their donation and the healing that is necessary after the procedure rather than worrying about missing work and income during the surgery and recovery periods. Protection for the Donor’s Family Most people who are considering becoming kidney donors are loving, caring individuals who are concerned about the people in their lives. That’s why they are interested in donating a kidney – to save the life of someone they care about. The APKD Donor Protection Program goes beyond just protecting the donor financially. It also provides protection for the donor’s family members. First, the insurance included in the Donor Protection Program covers temporary and permanent disability. This means that if there are complications and the donor is no longer able to work, or the donor needs ongoing care, the program will provide some compensation to cover any disabilities that arise due to the surgery. Second, all altruistic (non-directed) donors receive the APKD KidneyPledge. Under the KidneyPledge. APKD guarantees that, should a member of the non-directed donor’s immediate family need a kidney transplant in the future, they will be a priority candidate. This means that if you choose to donate a non-directed kidney through the APKD program, and in the future, your spouse, parent, child, grandchild, grandparent, or sibling finds they need a kidney, they can register with APKD and receive priority over other candidates. This propriety lasts for the first three months after the individual is activated in the APKD. Becoming a kidney donor should not create tremendous stress in your life. The APKD Donor Protection Program is here to reduce that stress, so you can focus on the life-giving gift you are supplying. Reach out to Alliance for Paired Kidney Donation to learn more about our process and how the Donor Protection Program can provide protection for you as you step up to become a living donor, or read the details of the program to see for yourself how APKD goes above and beyond to protect our donors.