The northern port city of Tianjin has passed the country's first regulation on organ donation to help standardize and encourage public organ donation on the mainland.

The Ministry of Health and the Red Cross Society of China launched a nationwide public organ donation system about two years ago to help facilitate organ donations by the Chinese public for lifesaving transplants.

"The organ donation regulation provides a legal basis for the society's Tianjin branch to get involved in the work and will inspire other regions and the country as a whole to introduce legislation on organ donation," said Wang Ping, director of the society's relief and health department.