Implementation Date: June 24, 2026

West Nile Virus Test Reporting in Effect for Deceased Donors; Required Testing to Start for All Donors on July 1

At-a-Glance Statement

Seasonal testing for West Nile Virus (WNV) by Nucleic Acid Testing (NAT) is now required for both deceased and living organ donors whose recoveries will occur between July 1 through October 31.

Please note: On June 18, the OPTN Board of Directors approved additional changes to infectious disease testing requirements for living donors by emergency action. These changes will shorten the testing windows for WNV and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) to within 7 days prior to organ recovery. Members will be notified when this change will go into effect. 

What You Need to Do

Organ procurement organizations (OPOs):

Starting today, June 24, 2026, OPOs must enter a response in the WNV infectious disease testing field in DonorNet® prior to sending out electronic notifications. A response will be required year-round, though for recoveries occurring between November 1 and June 30, WNV NAT testing is not required and a response of “Not Done” is consistent with policy.

Living donor recovery hospitals:

Living donor recovery hospitals must conduct infectious disease testing for WNV by NAT on all potential living donors with a planned organ recovery between July 1 and October 31. Test results must be obtained prior to living donor organ recovery. Testing must be performed as close as possible to the recovery date but within 14 days prior to the organ recovery. Please note: On June 18, the OPTN Board of Directors approved an emergency action to change the living donor testing window for WNV from 14 days prior to organ recovery to 7 days prior to organ recovery. Members will be notified when this change will go into effect. 

Documentation of living donor WNV NAT results must be maintained in the donor medical record in accordance with OPTN Policy 14.4.A: Living Donor Medical Evaluation Requirements. Future data collection changes are planned to enable reporting of living donor WNV NAT results in TIEDI®. These changes are pending Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval.

Both OPOs and living donor recovery hospitals:

OPOs and living donor recovery hospitals must ensure that WNV testing is completed in a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) certified laboratory or in a laboratory meeting equivalent requirements as determined by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) using an FDA-licensed, approved, or cleared test for WNV NAT testing.

Transplant hospitals:

Transplant hospitals should inform staff of the requirements for OPOs and living donor recovery hospitals to perform WNV NAT testing for all donors with organs recovered between July 1 and October 31 each year. Within this timeframe, WNV NAT results must be available to transplant hospital staff:

• Prior to organ implantation for deceased donor organs
• Prior to organ recovery for living donors

Example Scenarios

• A deceased donor evaluation begins on June 24, 2026 and it is anticipated that the actual organ recovery will take place on June 28, 2026. The OPO does not need to complete WNV NAT since it is outside the mandatory testing period of July 1 to October 31. The OPO starts running matches on June 25, 2026. The OPO must put in a response in DonorNet® in the WNV NAT infectious disease field prior to sending electronic organ offers. A response of “Not Done” is entered and the OPO starts sending electronic organ offer notifications on June 26, 2026. The donor’s organs are recovered on June 28, 2026.
  
  
• A deceased donor evaluation begins on June 29, 2026 and it does not seem likely that the organ recovery will take place before July 1, 2026. The OPO draws a blood sample and sends out for WNV NAT. The OPO enters “Pending” in DonorNet® under the WNV NAT infectious disease field. The OPO runs matches and sends out electronic organ offer notifications. The recovery is scheduled for July 2, 2026. The OPO receives results on July 1, 2026 and changes the WNV NAT infectious disease field to negative. Organ recovery takes place on July 2, 2026 and the WNV NAT results are available and shared with the accepting transplant programs prior to organ recovery and subsequent transplant that day.
  
  
• A potential living donor is being evaluated and is in the final stages of being cleared for donation. The organ recovery procedure is scheduled for July 1, 2026. The living donor recovery hospital sends the potential living donor to the laboratory for WNV NAT on June 26, which is 5 days prior to the scheduled surgery. The WNV NAT results come back as negative on June 27. The living donor is cleared to donate and organ recovery takes place as scheduled on July 1, 2026.

Resources

Information on donor tests is available on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website and additional information about WNV is available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website.

Questions?

If you have questions relating to implementation, contact UNOS Customer Service at unethelpdesk@unos.org, or call 800-978-4334 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET. The Organ Center is available 24 hours a day at 800-292-9537. 

For general inquiries, contact the OPTN at optn411@hrsa.gov, or call 1-866-678-6411.

The Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network is a public-private partnership that manages the U.S. organ donation and transplant system to provide transplants and support transplant patients. It establishes and enforces national policies for organ allocation, ensuring fairness and efficiency in matching organs from deceased donors with transplant candidates.

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