(Minghui.org) On September 28, 2026, the US Senate unanimously passed the bipartisan bill S.4009, “Falun Gong and Victims of Forced Organ Harvesting Protection Act.”
The House version of the bill, the Falun Gong Protection Act (H.R.1540), was passed unanimously in May 2025. The Senate version, S.4009, was introduced by Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon) and submitted to the Committee on Foreign Relations on March 5. The committee passed the bill on June 17. On July 27, Sen. James Risch reported the amended legislation to the Senate, which placed it on the legislative calendar. The Senate then passed S.4009 on September 28 by unanimous consent.
Now that S.4009 has passed the Senate, the amended bill will need to be reconciled and passed by the House. Then, if the President signs it (or does not veto it within the prescribed time limit), the legislation will become federal law.
Purpose of the Act
For over two decades, independent investigators have called for international action to stop the Chinese Communist Party’s killing of Falun Gong practitioners and other prisoners of conscience for organ transplants as part of the regime’s persecution of faith groups. The China Tribunal concluded in 2020, “In the long-term practice in the PRC of forced organ harvesting it was indeed Falun Gong practitioners who were used as a source—probably the principal source—of organs for forced organ harvesting.”
S.4009 aims to sanction foreigners who participate or assist in illegal organ trafficking and require the US State Department to provide a report on forced organ harvesting in China.
The enactment of S.4009 is expected to have a profound impact on the fields of medicine and ethics. This legislation aims to prevent US medical institutions, researchers, and companies from unknowingly assisting or participating in overseas training and collaboration related to organ transplants involving human rights violations.
Once signed, the law would encourage the US medical community to maintain high transparency and ethical self-discipline in organ transplantation, scientific exchange, and the use of international organ donation data. American institutions could thus avoid becoming indirect beneficiaries of forced organ harvesting and transplantation.
The legislation authorizes substantial sanctions against foreign individuals found to be involved or assisting in the illegal human organ trade, including freezing assets and denying entry to the United States.
The legislation also mandates that the US State Department submit a comprehensive report on policies in China regarding illegal human organ trafficking and transplantation overseas (particularly targeting Falun Gong practitioners, Uyghurs, and other groups), elevating the issue in US foreign policy and human rights reports. The report is also required to include a list of US grants from the past decade that have supported research on organ transplantation in China or in collaboration between Chinese and US entities.
Voices of Support
Before the bill’s passage in the Senate, many legislators and citizens from across America signed a petition to the Senate to express their support for the legislation.
“No matter what side of the aisle you’re on—what your political beliefs are, nobody believes that forced organ harvesting and slavery is okay. And that’s one thing that we can all agree on,” remarked Representative Scott Perry at a Pennsylvania event in June.
“The atrocities committed by the Chinese Communist Party against the people have been horrendous, and we need to take a stand about that as Americans,” said Delaware state representative Michael Smith during an interview in August. “I think America has always been a welcoming country, and sometimes we have to signal to the people living here in our country who have come from those oppressive areas that we have their back.”
“Just imagine that because of your beliefs and your faith, someone takes you to a hospital and takes your organs away,” said Aaron Bashir, president of the nonprofit organization American Real Voice. “Your kidney is gone, your heart is gone, your liver is gone, and no one even knows about it. By the time your family finds out, it is too late... I urge all of my colleagues, I urge all politicians, regardless of party lines, to please say yes to this bill to support and protect the Falun Gong community.”
Mula, an artist and writer from Maryland who signed the petition, commented, “Official action is needed. We have representation, and we need to speak to those representatives so they listen. A petition is one way to do that.”
After signing the petition with his wife, Delaware resident Edi Avoic said, “It’s a basic human right to have–a right of mankind to have–authority over his own body. Taking that away from people without their consent, whether or not they are violent or peaceful, is not proper. Just because they don’t use force to defend themselves doesn’t mean they should be deprived of that basic, inviolate, God-given way. So, it’s not something given to us by men. It’s something given to us by God.”
If Minghui readers have further concerns or suggestions regarding the remaining legislative process or its impact on the fields of healthcare, diplomacy, and human rights, please feel free to contact the Minghui Editorial Board.
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Category: Media Reports
