House lawmakers are investigating allegations that hospitals allowed wealthy foreign patients to bypass U.S. organ transplant waiting lists, raising concerns as over 100,000 Americans await life-saving procedures.
House lawmakers are launching a congressional investigation into two prominent hospital systems amid serious allegations that they permitted wealthy foreign patients to bypass U.S. organ transplant waiting lists. This inquiry comes at a time when more than 100,000 Americans are on these lists, with thousands dying each year while awaiting life-saving organs.
Representatives Jason Smith, R-Mo., and David Schweikert, R-Ariz., who lead the House Ways and Means Committee’s oversight efforts, sent letters on Tuesday to the University of Chicago Medical Center and Montefiore Medical Center in New York. They demanded that the hospitals provide records by February 10 and warned that subpoenas would be issued if compliance is not met.
The allegations, first reported by the New York Times, suggest that these tax-exempt hospitals transplanted organs from American donors into foreign nationals who traveled to the U.S. specifically for transplants, effectively allowing them to jump ahead of American patients on waiting lists. Smith and Schweikert expressed concern that this conduct could have dire consequences for U.S. patients, potentially resulting in loss of life.
Smith emphasized that the allegations challenge the fundamental principles of what tax-exempt hospitals are meant to represent and could prompt a broader review of whether these institutions should continue to receive tax benefits. “If U.S. hospitals who enjoy lucrative taxpayer-funded benefits have prioritized foreign nationals for organ transplants over saving American lives, they should have their tax-exempt status terminated,” he stated. “America First means prioritizing American lives, not your bottom line. The Ways and Means Committee will leave no stone unturned and is prepared to utilize every tool at our disposal, including subpoenas, in pursuit of the truth.”
In their letter to University of Chicago Medical Center President Thomas Jackiewicz, lawmakers expressed particular alarm regarding the hospital’s transplant statistics. They noted that foreign patients constituted approximately 11% of the hospital’s heart and lung transplants, with 61 international patients receiving organs between 2020 and 2024—more than any other hospital in the U.S.
Lawmakers highlighted instances where foreign patients allegedly received organs within days, while American patients faced significantly longer waits. One case involved a wealthy Japanese woman who reportedly received a heart transplant just three days after being placed on the waiting list, following an exception that elevated her priority. This patient was a self-pay international recipient, and a charity established by her husband later donated funds to a nonprofit associated with the transplant surgeon’s family, raising concerns about a possible quid pro quo.
The lawmakers noted that this case has alarmed transplant experts and drawn scrutiny due to implications that wealth, connections, and post-transplant charitable donations may have influenced access to scarce organs. They also questioned whether the hospital violated its obligations as a tax-exempt institution by allegedly entering into contracts with foreign governments for transplant services.
“Contracting with a foreign government to provide these crucial services to foreign nationals over American citizens raises serious questions as to the nature of the community benefit that you are providing in order to maintain your tax-exempt status,” the letter stated.
A separate letter addressed to Montefiore Medical Center President and CEO Philip O. Ozuah outlined similar concerns. Lawmakers referenced reports indicating that 20% of lung transplant recipients at Montefiore were international patients, generating tens of millions of dollars in revenue for the hospital.
The letter alleged that Montefiore promoted its transplant services abroad by emphasizing short wait times and concierge care. Whistleblowers claimed that international patients received preferential treatment, including alterations or omissions of medical records to expedite their access to organs.
A former transplant financial coordinator reportedly told the New York Times that American patients were often sidelined, stating, “[W]e had patients who we’d been working with, who had been waiting their turn, and then someone from Kuwait would come and jump the line.”
Smith and Schweikert pointed out that over 100,000 Americans are currently awaiting organ transplants, with approximately 5,600 dying each year while on the waiting list. “Montefiore’s decision to provide foreign nationals with this critical service—and preferential treatment over American citizens—in return for massive payments far exceeding the market rate is completely inappropriate,” the letter asserted.
This demand for records comes amid an ongoing congressional investigation into the U.S. organ transplant system. Schweikert noted that the investigation has already yielded results, including the Trump administration’s decision to decertify a Miami organ procurement organization. He mentioned that testimony at a December hearing revealed “shocking stories of organ donations gone terribly wrong” and underscored the need for greater transparency within the transplant system.
As this investigation unfolds, lawmakers are determined to uncover the truth behind these allegations and ensure that the integrity of the organ transplant process is upheld for all Americans.
According to the New York Times, the situation raises critical ethical questions about the prioritization of patients in need of transplants.
