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SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah used to lead the nation in percentage of the population who had registered as organ donors, but in recent years the state has dropped to No. 7.
To try to take the lead again, the Utah Donor Registry has launched a new website that makes it easier than ever for a person to register to donate.
"Say 'YES!' to organ and eye and tissue donation" and "Register now!" are statements you can't ignore on the newly-launched site.
"The purpose of the registry is to get people registered to indicate their wishes about being an organ, eye and tissue donor," said Alex McDonald, with Intermountain Donor Services.
It's nothing new that as a Utahn you can register online to donate organs. In fact, other states saw our success and followed suit -- that's how we fell to number seven.
Greg Michels is on the top of a list to receive a heart; he literally does not have one. "They gave me a week or two to live. That was about eight weeks ago," he said.
Michels is kept alive through a machine. He hopes this website will get more people to register by answering common questions and clearing up misconceptions about donating.
"If they hit the age of 50, they think they are too old," McDonald said. "People have been told they can't donate blood [and] they assume they can't donate organs."
Neither are true, and patients like Michels hope by getting the correct information out, more people will register.
McDonald says there are over 100,000 people waiting for a transplant.
CLICK HERE to check out the new "YES! Utah" website.
E-mail: abutterfield@ksl.com
