Senate Bill 2217 Summary

• Reenacts and comprehensively revises Mississippi's Uniform Anatomical Gift Act (sections 41-39-101 through 41-39-149) to establish procedures for making, amending, and revoking anatomical gifts of body parts for transplantation, therapy, research, or education.

• Permits anatomical gifts to be made during life through driver's licenses, wills, donor cards, or oral communication to at least two adults (one disinterested), and allows gifts to be made after death by authorized family members in a specified priority order.

• Establishes a donor registry system administered by the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, accessible 24/7 to procurement organizations to verify whether individuals have made, amended, or revoked anatomical gifts.

• Prohibits the sale of body parts for valuable consideration as a felony punishable by up to $50,000 in fines or five years imprisonment, though reasonable charges for processing and preservation are permitted.

• Requires coordination between hospitals and procurement organizations, establishes medical examiner protocols for organ recovery in death investigations, and provides immunity from civil liability for good-faith actions made under the act.