Organ Donations See Sharp Decline After Reports Of 'Dead' Man Waking Up On Operating Table

A donor is wheeled to an operating room for a kidney transplant at Johns Hopkins Hospital June 26, 2012 in Baltimore, Maryland. Doctors from Johns Hopkins transplanted the kidney from a living donor into the patient recipient. (Credit: Latin Times)

Organ donations are experiencing a significant decline after a Kentucky man was mistakenly declared dead before an organ retrieval attempt,

In 2021, Thomas TJ Hoover II was officially declared brain dead after a drug overdose, but he unexpectedly showed signs of life while being prepped for organ donation, the Associated Press reported.

The incident was brought back to the public eye last month during a recent congressional hearing, leading to investigations into the protocols surrounding death declarations in organ donation.

Following Hoover's case, a dramatic rise in people revoking organ donor registrations has been reported.

A tenfold rise in opt-outs is being seen in the U.S. and abroad, according to the AP.

Donate Life America saw 170 people a day revoke their organ donation status in the week after the 2021 case was publicized. That's 10 times more than last year.

In response to the sharp decline, the federal agency overseeing organ transplants in the U.S. has launched an investigation, with state authorities reviewing Hoover's incident.