Under present laws, doctors need the permission of family members before harvesting the organs of a deceased donor, even if that person had listed themselves on the Organ Donor Register.

Yesterday, the widow of cricketer and organ donor David Hookes said she was thrilled by the changes, which she believes will relieve bereaved families of a burden and improve donation rates.

Robyn Hookes, the director of the David Hookes Foundation - launched in News Ltd newspapers, including The Advertiser,  in February - said the changes could lead to an improvement in Australia's organ donation rate, one of the worst in the developed world. "It's great to know that you can make that decision while you're alive and know that your family can't veto it," said Mrs Hookes, whose husband died on January 19.

"Hopefully, it will make a huge difference."

Her sentiments were echoed by state Health Minister Lea Stevens, who spearheaded the push for the uniform legislation at the health ministers' conference yesterday.

"Increasing organ donation rates is a national priority and we should take all steps to ensure that organ donation rates are maximised," Ms Stevens said.

Donation rates in Australia are among the lowest in the world, with about 2000 people waiting for an organ for a life-saving transplant.

Last year, there were 625 successful transplants from 179 donors, but more than 140 Australians died waiting for organs that never came.

Federal Health Minister Tony Abbott said the new laws, expected to be introduced in every state later this year, would change the rights of a deceased person's family.

"It will be a right of veto rather than the necessity to get explicit permission," Mr Abbott said.

Respect would be paid to families who opposed a donation, with guidelines to be prepared to deal with such a situation.

These would include allowing doctors to check the donor register to discover the wishes of the deceased.

Ms Stevens said that given the renewed focus of organ donation following the death of Hookes, it was important to have a nationally consistent approach to donations.

Meanwhile, the health ministers agreed to reforms to give patients more information on professionally suspect doctors and accident-prone hospitals.

Hospitals would be forced to publicly reveal designated medical mistakes under a new national safety standard. The ministers' conference also agreed to set up a national doctors' registration system, making it easier for medicos to move between states.