'You're Getting To Be Like Me, An Old-Timer': Randy Weber Shares Moment Of Laughter With Committee

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During a House Energy Committee hearing before the Congressional Recess, Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX) asked Chief of the Organ Transplant Branch at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Dr. Raymond Lynch about his history and experience.

Transcript

00:00The chair recognizes a gentleman from Texas, Mr. Weber, for his five minutes of questioning.

00:05Thank you, Chairman.

00:08Dr. Lynch, I guess I have to confess that I don't know a whole lot about you.

00:14Background, college qualifications, can you help us with that?

00:20Yes, I joined HRSA in October of last year.

00:23Prior to that, I was an abdominal transplant surgeon.

00:25I'm board certified in surgery, and I have been a doctor for 20 years.

00:33I'm board certified in abdominal surgery, and I guess without going to too many of the details,

00:39quote-unquote, but there's other organs, so does that cover pretty much all?

00:46Sure, so my board certification is in general surgery through the American Board of Surgery,

00:50and then I did complete a further certification through the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.

00:56Okay, and I guess what colleges did you go to?

01:01I'm just curious.

01:02I got my undergrad degree from Boston College.

01:04I got my medical degree and a master's in immunobiology from Yale University,

01:08and then I did my postgraduate residency, my surgical training at the University of Michigan,

01:14and my abdominal transplant fellowship at Emory University.

01:17Okay, would you say that you have performed a number of transplants?

01:21Is it 20, 120, or what would you get?

01:24Hundreds.

01:25Hundreds?

01:26Two or three hundred?

01:27More than that.

01:28I don't recall the exact number, but more than that.

01:30Right.

01:31And so most all of them, with your background and with your expertise, were for transplant?

01:38After I finished my fellowship, I focused on transplant surgery, yes.

01:43And how many years ago was that?

01:45I finished my fellowship in 2014.

01:472014.

01:48You're getting to be like me, an old-timer.

01:49I don't believe I should comment on that.

01:53Well, you don't have as much gray hair as I do, so I'll give you that.

01:58Well, let me get you, if you don't mind, to describe the events that led to the development

02:03of HRSA's, HRSA's report, dated March 24th to 25th.

02:07And how did HRSA first become aware of these patient safety concerns?

02:13So this specific concern was brought to HRSA's attention during a meeting or a hearing of

02:19this committee on September 11th of last year.

02:21The next day, the OPTN contractor directed the OPO, Kentucky Oregon Donor Associates

02:30or Agency, to respond with records.

02:35They responded on the 20th of September with a single-page letter that disputed the substance

02:41of the report that was given to this committee, but did not provide any of the records that

02:45were asked for by the OPTN contractor.

02:47I believe four days later, the OPTN and the contractor closed the case.

02:52Now, this was before my time at HRSA, but HRSA staff who were in attendance at that virtual

02:57call were not satisfied that a thorough review had been done and directed the OPTN and its

03:04contractor to reopen the case and actually review the records that had been requested.

03:08So when did you get on board with HRSA?

03:11October 21st.

03:13Oh, so very recently.

03:14Okay, so you said the call was May, September 11th of last year.

03:19Who made that call?

03:20There was an individual who provided a letter that was discussed in a hearing of this committee.

03:26Well, I guess without violating somebody's props or something, was that a patient or was

03:33it somebody who worked in the industry?

03:35It's been reported in the media.

03:37It was an individual who was a former employee of that OPO who still worked in the transplant

03:43space.

03:45And who still worked and is still there today?

03:48No.

03:48They lost their employment.

03:51Okay.

03:51If you went, if you were notified of that, I think you gave the dates, but how long, exactly

03:58what was the timeline, September the 11th, and when was it terminated again?

04:03So they received the single page letter on the 20th and they terminated it on the 24th.

04:11How many individuals were involved in actually developing that report?

04:15The report, the letter that the OPO sent back?

04:21And the response?

04:22In their response?

04:23I don't know.

04:24You don't know?

04:25The OPO.

04:26Who has oversight of that?

04:27So HRSA has oversight over the OPO and the, or through the OPTN, and that is why HRSA

04:34reopened that investigation.

04:36And who in HRSA has that oversight?

04:38It's authority delegated through the secretary to the associate administrator.

04:43And we would hope that that's a licensed position that has as much experience.

04:47So the associate administrator, through the authorities that have been granted by the

04:51securing act, has hired in a lot of expertise, subject matter expertise, data analytics expertise.

04:57To assist with that.

04:58Okay.

04:59Mr. Chairman, I yield back.

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