LAS VEGAS, NV AND RENO, NV / ACCESS Newswire / January 8, 2026 / Nevada Donor Network (NDN) announced today that it has been awarded the Southern Florida Designated Service Area (DSA) by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) following an extensive and highly competitive bid process initiated after the decertification of Life Alliance Organ Recovery Agency (LAORA) in September 2025.
The CMS decision reflects confidence in NDN's proven ability to stabilize, rebuild, and lead high-performing organ procurement operations while ensuring donor families, hospital partners, and transplant recipients are served with excellence, dignity, and compassion.
Over the past decade, Nevada Donor Network has undergone a nationally recognized organizational transformation-evolving from a historically underperforming Organ Procurement Organization (OPO) into one of the country's strongest performers. In 2025, NDN maintained Tier 1A status, the highest performance designation awarded by CMS, that achievement positioned NDN as a compelling candidate to assume responsibility for the Southern Florida DSA and restore public confidence in donation and recovery services for the region.
"CMS's decision affirms the work our team has done for more than a decade to build a culture of accountability, transparency, and mission-driven performance," said Joseph Ferreira, President & CEO of Nevada Donor Network. "Southern Florida deserves an organ procurement organization that is stable, trusted, and relentlessly focused on saving and healing lives. We are honored to bring our experience and commitment to this community."
NDN's selection was further strengthened by its longstanding and meaningful ties to Southern Florida, including professional relationships, operational experience, and deep familiarity with the region's diverse communities and healthcare landscape. These connections, combined with NDN's demonstrated success in organizational turnaround and sustained performance improvement, positioned the organization to assume control swiftly and responsibly.
The transition comes at a critical moment for Southern Florida. Following LAORA's decertification, CMS initiated a rigorous evaluation process to identify an organization capable of restoring operational integrity, strengthening hospital partnerships, and maximizing donation opportunities. NDN's bid emphasized patient-centered outcomes, collaboration with transplant centers, and a commitment to rebuilding trust with donor families and community stakeholders.
In 2025 alone, NDN honored hundreds of heroic donors whose generosity resulted in thousands of lives saved and healed through organ, tissue, cornea, and birth tissue donation. NDN's around-the-clock clinical operations, data-driven performance management, and strong hospital partnerships have consistently translated into improved authorization rates, increased organ recovery, and better transplant outcomes.
As NDN prepares to begin operations in Southern Florida, the organization is working closely with CMS to ensure a thoughtful, compliant, and seamless transition. NDN is committed to engaging local hospitals, transplant programs, donor families, and community leaders to ensure continuity of care and to build a donation system that reflects the needs and values of Southern Florida residents.
"Our mission has always been about honoring heroic donors and saving and healing as many lives as possible," Ferreira added. "That mission does not stop at state lines. We are ready to serve Southern Florida with the same urgency, respect, and excellence that have defined Nevada Donor Network's success."
About Nevada Donor Network
Nevada Donor Network is a federally designated 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organ procurement organization (OPO) committed to maximizing the gift of life and health through organ and tissue donation. Established in 1987, Nevada Donor Network is one of only 55 OPOs in the U.S. serving more than three million people in the state of Nevada and 100,000 potential transplant recipients across the country. They work collaboratively with hospital staff and community partners to promote research and provide a strong support network to courageous donor families who've turned loss into hope.
At Nevada Donor Network, they encourage Nevadans to help individuals in need of life-saving transplants through education, research and action. Nevada Donor Network is a member of Donate Life Nevada, an affiliate of Donate Life America, whose state-wide efforts encourage Nevadans to register as organ, eye and tissue donors. For more information, please visit www.nvdonor.org/.
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Media Contact:
Latoya Bembry | The Ferraro Group
702-278-1000 | latoya@theferrarogroup.com
SOURCE: Nevada Donor Network
View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire:
https://www.accessnewswire.com/newsroom/en/healthcare-and-pharmaceutical/nevada-donor-network-awarded-southern-florida-designated-service-area-1125806
