JOINT MEDIA RELEASE

Senator Anne Ruston
Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
Senator for South Australia

Dr Anne Webster MP
Shadow Minister for Regional Health
Shadow Minister for Regional Communications
Federal Member for Mallee

Coalition backs sensible reforms to promote organ donation as Health Ministers meet

Friday 1 May 2026

The Coalition has reiterated its support for reforms to make organ donation registration easier by linking it to driver’s licences, ahead of the Health Ministers meeting today where the proposal is due to be discussed.

Despite strong public support, only around 200,000 Australians sign up as organ donors each year, while the population grows by about 450,000 annually.

In a submission to Health Ministers, Transplant Australia has pointed to clear evidence that linking donor registration to drivers’ licences significantly boosts rates of organ donation.

According to the peak body, when a loved one was a registered donor, 8 out of 10 families agree to organ donation. That number drops to just 4 out of 10 families when organ donation is not registered.

Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care Senator Anne Ruston said the Coalition welcomes any campaign that seeks to encourage more Australians to have a conversation about organ donation and to register their decision.

“Registration can save lives. While drivers’ licences are a matter for state and territory governments, the Coalition supports practical measures to promote the value of organ donation and make it easier to notify their loved ones of their intentions,” Senator Ruston said.

“The evidence is clear. In my home state of South Australia where it is easy to register as an organ donor through the driver’s licence process, 74 per cent of adults are signed up – more than double any other state.”

In contrast to South Australia, Victorian organ donor registrations sit at just 23 per cent, Queensland at 30 per cent and Western Australia at 35 per cent.

Shadow Minister for Regional Health Dr Anne Webster MP has a granddaughter who is an organ recipient and is the co-chair of the Parliamentary Friends of Organ Donation – an initiative she declared she would pursue in her maiden speech in 2019.

“I am passionate about improving rates of organ donation because I know from family experience that it saves lives,” Dr Webster said.

“So many Australians are waiting for organ donation and the circumstances where organs can be donated can be time-critical and very narrow.  That’s why it’s critical we do everything we can to encourage as many Australians as possible to register as organ donors.”

“I hope the federal Coalition’s indication of support today encourages Health Ministers to see that including organ donation registration on drivers’ licences is not a partisan issue, it is a life-saving initiative that is, and should be, beyond politics.”

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ENDS

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