FROM FOX NEWS: A Trump-aligned legal group founded by White House aide Stephen Miller filed Freedom of Information Act requests Thursday targeting a Biden organ transplant program that critics warn could be open to abuse.
The requests from America First Legal went to the Department of Health and Human Services, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and the Health Resources and Services Administration. At issue is the Increasing Organ Transplant Access Model, a six-year mandatory program finalized in December 2024 and set to take effect in July 2025, which aims to expand access to kidney transplants but has drawn criticism from Trump officials who warn it may be vulnerable to outside influence.
The model builds on earlier payment experiments, testing whether financial rewards and penalties can improve care and expand access for Medicare and Medicaid patients.
Trump officials and allies, including America First Legal, argue the system risks distortion by outside interests — a charge that prompted AFL’s FOIA requests as part of a broader investigation.
They cited in part recent findings from an HRSA-led probe published earlier this year. That investigation suggested third-party groups or for-profit organizations “may have unduly influenced the IOTA Model”— though their exact role or the extent they may have done so is unclear.
The payment model will affect over 100 U.S. transplant hospitals over six years, imposing mandatory financial incentives and penalties based on a final performance score.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. also cited concerns from a study that revealed clear negligence and disturbing practices by a large organ procurement organization in the U.S., prompting him to launch a new reform initiative.
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