Overview

• Eight states led by North Rhine-Westphalia secured Bundesrat support for a draft that would treat all adults as donors unless they opted out.
• The bill outlines objection channels via the national register, a donor card or a patient directive, with no justification required.
• If no recorded objection exists, relatives would be asked about any known contrary wishes; minors and people lacking capacity are exempted from presumed consent.
• Proponents cite a persistent shortfall, with about 8,300 patients waiting early in 2025 versus roughly 2,850 organs donated in 2024, according to Eurotransplant data.
• The initiative now moves to the Bundestag with no set timetable after a 2020 attempt failed and a 2024 Bundesrat push lapsed before early elections.