Date: 2017 – 20
Category: Healthcare
For four years, the Daily Mirror campaigned for the introduction of Max and Keira’s Law, an opt-out organ donation law, that was finally rolled in May 2020. The ground-breaking law assumes that people will donate their organs unless they opt-out, giving hope of new life to millions who need organ transplants. The organ law was named after Max Johnson who received a heart from nine-year-old Keira Bell, who died in 2017.
The Daily Mirror’s campaign for Max and Keira’s Law had the support of both sets of parents as well the backing of news brand readers. When the law was passed, the Daily Mirror featured the story of a 14-month old boy called Ethan who has been waiting since August 2019 for a new heart. Max’s message to readers today was “you did it for me…now you do it for Ethan”.
A year on from the Daily Mirror’s triumph in its long fight to ‘Change the Law for Life’, nearly 300 people had received donated organs for life-saving transplants – despite the difficulties caused by the pandemic – thanks to the historic opt-out law.
Max and Keira’s Law reflects the majority of the public’s views that organ donation is the right thing to do, providing hope and comfort for families in some of the hardest moments of their lives. I’d like to thank the Daily Mirror for campaigning for this change and for sharing personal stories on the transformative power of organ donation with their readers.
Health Secretary, Matt Hancock
