Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. just dropped the hammer on one of the most disturbing scandals in the American organ transplant system.
On Wednesday in Lexington, Kentucky, RFK Jr. announced that HHS is decertifying Network for Hope, the federally designated organ procurement organization (OPO) serving Kentucky and parts of Indiana, Ohio, and West Virginia, after federal reviewers found the group repeatedly ignored clear signs of life in patients who were about to have their organs cut out.
According to the official HHS release, the Health Resources and Services Administration reviewed 351 Network for Hope cases between 2021 and 2024 in which organ donation had been authorized but was ultimately not completed.
In 103 of those cases, nearly 30%, investigators found “concerning features.” That includes 73 patients who showed neurological signs completely incompatible with organ donation.
Some of these potential “donors” may not even have been dead when the procurement process started.
One case that helped trigger the investigation involved Anthony Thomas “TJ” Hoover II. His sister, Donna Rohrer, has said Hoover opened his eyes before the planned retrieval procedure and later thrashed, cried, and grabbed at a doctor during cardiac testing. The process reportedly ended only after a physician refused to proceed. Hoover survived.
RFK Jr.: I’m announcing that HHS has begun the decertification of Network for Hope, the organ procurement organization serving Kentucky and parts of Indiana, Ohio, and West Virginia.
We reached this decision after extensive reviews by CMS and HRSA found persistent patient safety failures despite repeated oversight, repeated warnings, corrective action plans, and multiple opportunities to improve.
Federal reviewers found serious deficiencies in nearly 30% of the cases they examined.
We found patients placed on the organ donation pathway who should have never been there. We found cases where the donation process continued despite signs that patients were not appropriate organ donors. We found repeated failures in clinical judgment, oversight, and patient safety. And we found that these problems continued even after the organization promised to correct them.
These failures had real consequences. One of those cases involved TJ Hoover.
TJ showed signs of awareness while on the operating table, about to have his organs removed. Physicians refused to proceed with the organ recovery because they believed he was still alive.
Because they acted, TJ is alive and is here with us today.
TJ, we are grateful that you’re here, and we’re grateful to those physicians who had the courage to do the right thing.
WATCH:
BREAKING: Secretary RFK Jr. has DECERTIFIED Kentucky’s organ procurement organization Network for Hope after they IGNORED signs of life from SEVERAL patients scheduled for organ donations
This is BEYOND evil. People should be LOCKED UP over this.
Despite signs of life, the… pic.twitter.com/fcdTTrAD33
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) August 5, 2026
HHS says that under the Biden administration, an Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network committee closed the case that sparked the federal investigation without taking action.
The department also says the previous administration knew about patient-safety violations but failed to hold the organization accountable.
The Gateway Pundit previously covered the scandal in July 2025 under the headline: “Feds Reveal Dozens of Organ Donors May Not Have Been Dead When ‘Procurement’ Processes Started!”
Despite the earlier warnings and a federally mandated corrective-action program, HRSA and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services independently concluded that Network for Hope had not demonstrated sufficient improvement.
A May 2026 CMS review reportedly found continuing concerns involving donor evaluation, adverse-event reviews, and administration.
Network for Hope disputes the government’s conclusions. CEO Barry Massa said the organization “strongly disagrees” with Kennedy’s decision and will appeal.
The organization says it complies with national transplant policies and has implemented a procedure allowing staff to pause a donation when safety concerns arise.
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