OPTN/SRTR 2013 Annual Data Report: Economics

While the costs to Medicare of solid organ transplant are varied and considerable, the total Medicare expenditure of $4.4 billion for solid organ transplant recipients was less than 1 remains one of the most cost-effective surgical interventions in medicine. Heart transplant, the most expensive of the major transplants, is likely cost-effective; SRTR has released an Excel-based tool for investigators to use in exploring this question further. It is likely that most solid organ transplants are cost-effective, given the results presented here and the relatively high cost of heart transplant. However, this must be verified with further study.