Any Board-approved system for local organ allocation or distribution that is different from the standard allocation or distribution system for that organ. Alternative allocation systems are designed to increase organ availability and/or organ quality, reduce or address an inequity in allocation unique to the local area, and/or testing a stated hypothesis intended to benefit the allocation/distribution system overall. There are different kinds of Alternative Allocation Systems: a) Alternative local units (ALUs), b) Sharing arrangements and agreements, c) Alternative point assignment protocols, and d) any combination of the components listed here, See also Alternative local unit (ALU), Sharing arrangements and agreements, Alternative point assignment protocols.
(OPTN Glossary May 2021)
A type of variance that allows members who are permitted to join the variance to allocate organs differently than the OPTN Policies.
(OPTN Policy Definitions May 2021)