House Bill 510 in Kentucky went into effect earlier in July, reported WKYT. The law created a new section of KRS Chapter 311 that allows a pause in organ donation recovery procedures if there is a change in neurological status, observed signs of life or any uncertainty regarding neurological status or death declarations.
Medical expert Dr. Heidi Klessig joined American Family Radio (AFR)’s “Jenna Ellis in the Morning” program to sound the alarm on what patients and families need to know before a medical crisis hits.
Klessig pointed to a disturbing trend where hospitals push rapidly toward organ harvesting, highlighting the tragic case of 38-year-old Andy Hodge — a patient hospitalized during COVID-19 whose family had to fight to demonstrate he was still showing signs of life.
According to Klessig’s X post, Andy was falsely declared braindead, and an ethics committee had put him under a “do not resuscitate” order. Meanwhile, Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates (Network of Hope) had visited Andy multiple times during the hospitalization.
“One of the specifically listed indications of life is spontaneous movement. If you're moving, wouldn't any reasonable person think that you are still alive?” Klessig asks. “But actually, under the American Academy of Neurology’s brain death guidelines, they have a whole table of movements that are allowed, which they call as possibly reflexive.”
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) found in 2025 a “systemic disregard for sanctity of life” in the organ transplant system, resulting in HSS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announcing major reforms.
Recently, HHS announced the decertification of Network of Hope, a federally designated organ procurement organization (OPO) serving in several states, after finding “persistent patient safety failures despite extensive oversight and despite Network for Hope having been provided repeated opportunities to correct them.”
Klessig praised Kentucky for passing the nation's first law allowing families to legally pause the organ donation process when signs of life appear. However, she warned listeners to take proactive steps to protect themselves before a medical emergency arises.
“I recommend at this point that no one be a registered organ donor because once you have registered, your organs will be taken. That registration, even though you signed up from the goodness of your heart with no type of informed consent process, is considered legally binding,” Klessig states.
She urged people to visit her website, respectforhumanlife.com, to access life-affirming medical power of attorney documents and “refuse to donate” wallet cards.
