More and more, it seems as if Facebook is part of peoples’ lives. Soon, that might be literal.

The site has begun offering a new Health and Wellness section to inspire members of the social network to post their organ donor status. It’s a need too often overlooked.

Recent news stories say that more than 100,000 people in this country are waiting for organ transplants. Not all of them make it: 18 people in the country die every day because they have not received organs in time.

Facebook has shown its reach in times of disasters. People used Facebook after the recent tornados in Missouri to return items that were lost. After the Japanese earthquake in March 2011, Facebook was used to help people find family members.

Organ donations ratchets the issue to a whole new level, but it’s one that deserves the push. Too often people die before they think about this and/or tell family members their wishes. If Facebook can make more people understand the issue, more people will live.

– Craig Groshart, Bellevue Reporter