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Al B. Sure survived an illness that almost took his life. Now, he’s advocating for transplant recipients all the way to Capitol Hill.
The “Nite & Day” crooner had a liver transplant in 2022 after health challenges that led to renal failure and a two-month coma. He is now president of the Health Equity in Transplantation Coalition (HETC), traveling to Washington, D.C., this week to lobby lawmakers on behalf of transplant recipients.
He and the Rev. Al Sharpton formed the Coalition to fight a recent Medicare decision to limit non-invasive post-transplant blood testing for people who’ve received heart, lung, or kidney transplants.
“Black, Hispanic, Latino, and underserved communities were given a lifeline with these non-invasive tests,” Sharpton said. “That was taken away in March 2023, when a private company decided Medicare would no longer cover this life-saving measure for transplant recipients, who overwhelmingly come from these communities.”
Forty percent of transplant recipients are Black or Latino, per HETC.
Sure says he’s determined to use his platform to convince lawmakers to oppose the decision.
“I will not stop until I get this done,” he told April Ryan of The Grio. “It has been quite a journey since waking from a coma and then [receiving] a transplant.”
In a press release, he added, “It makes no sense to take away Medicare coverage for these underserved transplant recipients who can take these modern blood tests at home. Rather than tying Medicare to an invasive biopsy that might require expensive travel, time off work for their patient and caregiver, and surgery in a hospital.”
Sure called his efforts a “back to wellness” initiative. After sharing his health crisis on social media, Sure revealed his transplant in an interview with Fox New York last December.
“I have what’s called ‘Chevron,’ that’s when they cut your chest open, which is probably the first time I was actually talking about it…[I’m a] recipient of an amazing blessed new liver — and you know I’m going to treat it well,” he said.
Born Albert Brown, the 55-year-old scheduled meetings with members of Congress, including Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Rep. Danny Davis, D-Ill., and Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif.
“We’re trying to provide something specifically to the culture … equity and testing,” Sure said.
For more information on the work of the HETC, head to EquityforTransplants.org and click on the Act Now button.
