Fourteen years ago, I was diagnosed with a blood cancer. My prognosis was clear: Without a stem cell transplant, I would not survive. When we found out that I had no matched donor in my own family, my doctors turned to the National Marrow Donor Program/Be The Match (NMDP/BTM) to find a volunteer donor. Within months, NMDP found me a match, and thanks to the astonishing generosity of a complete stranger, I am still alive today.
To celebrate this second chance at life, and to honor the anonymous young woman who truly saved my life, I have joined NMDP to call on Congress to cosponsor the Life Saving Leave Act (H.R. 3024). This bipartisan bill would protect the jobs of bone marrow donors nationwide by giving them the same basic protections afforded to donors of kidneys and other organs: 40 nonconsecutive hours of unpaid leave from work to facilitate the donation process.
I have met with Rep. Blake Moore (R-UT-1) to ask him to join Reps. Christopher Smith (R-NJ-4), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-1), Doris Matsui (D-CA-7) and several others across the country who have already co-sponsored this important bill. During our conversation, Rep. Moore called the bill “common-sense legislation,” but it is more than that. It is legislation that would save both lives and livelihoods.
As the law currently stands, donors must often choose between keeping their jobs and saving a life. Nobody should be faced with such a choice. By sponsoring this bill, Rep. Moore can support American jobs, American lives, and the people who make both possible.
Hilary Jacobs, Salt Lake City
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