1968 – Uniform Anatomical Gift Act – Authorizes the gift of all or part of a human body at death for transplant, research, education or other therapies. Includes a description of who may donate and who may receive a donation. (Revised 1987)

1980 – Uniform Determination of Death Act – Recognizes that an individual who has sustained either (1) irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions or (2) irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem, is dead.

1984 – National Organ Transplant Act – Establishes a task force on organ transplantation to examine medical, ethical, legal, economic and social issues related to organ transplantation. This act led to the establishment of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) and the Division of Transplantation (DoT) as a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to ensure that organs and tissues are distributed in a fair and efficient manner. It also made the buying and selling of organs illegal.

1986 –Omnibus Reconciliation Act – Mandates that hospitals eligible for Medicaid and Medicare must establish policies and procedures for organ procurement in order to receive reimbursement. (Revised 1987)

1998 – Health Care Finance Administration (HCFA) Final Rule – Stipulates that to meet Medicare conditions of participation, all deaths and all imminent deaths must be reported to the hospital's federally designated organ procurement organization to ascertain medical suitability. In addition, only designated requestors trained by the hospital’s federally designated OPO will be allowed to offer the option of organ and tissue donation to families.