Should Human Organs Be Traded or Sold Within the United States?

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Should Human Organs Be Traded or Sold Within the United States? What’s the Right Thing to Do? As NBC13.com news points out “everyday seventeen people die waiting for organ transplants.” These deaths could simply be prevented by having a system in place that could provide a service to these helpless individuals. According to this site, there are 120,000 people still waiting for organs, nationwide; 30,000 of them are African Americans. But when it comes down to the issue of free trade of human organs, the majority of American citizens will consider it a controversial and ethical issue. There could be a large group of people supporting each side of this argument. However, only those who want to sell their organs and those who need the organs can be affected by this right. I believe, in United States, the sale of human organs should be legalized. This will save the lives of thousands of people who are on the waiting list that may die while waiting. In addition, allowing free trade could help those people to receive the organs in a timely manner, thus reducing many additional medical complications caused by living with a dysfunctional organ. Since stopping free trade of human organs can interfere with so many people’s right to life, the sale of human organs should be legalized. Epstein, in his article, provides an arresting statistic for those who opt to wait in the traditional manner. He reports, “The transplant waiting list currently includes 55,560 patients, and about 4,000 of them will die waiting.” For a moment, just imagine that you or your loved one is one of those patients waiting with hope of organ transplantation. Time is of the essence. We must consider each day very critical in this process. Why is time so critical? H... ... middle of paper ... ...t oversight, proper implementation, and thorough follow through with each and every case, it can be done. We shouldn’t spare even one more life while we have the ability to save it. We, as one of the top industrialized nations in the world, should lead the way in starting this process so other countries may follow. Organ donation is low all around the world. Let us start saving lives, one by one. We can begin by educating and more importantly, dispelling myths. We can hold forums in colleges and universities, not to mention large businesses and churches. We could ask organ recipients to share their stories. These powerful messages carry so much more meaning to those who are unwilling to take a position. With the ongoing improvements in medicine and technology and the spirit of the politically correctness, much can be done to save lives. It’s the right thing to do!

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