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Legalize the sale of human organs
Ethical issues with organ donation
Ethical issues with organ donation
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The Market for Organs Today, 120,000 people are waiting for organ transplants in the United States. On average eighteen of these people die every day because they did not get the organ donation because of an absence of available organs for transplant. There is a large and increasing shortage of organs for transplant patients not only in America but in the whole world. Currently, the only organs that a transplant patient can legally receive are from cadavers or living relatives. This leaves patients with a very small chance of getting the help they need if they do not have a living relative with a compatible organ. If there were a free market for organs, it is believed by many experts that up to half of these patients would be able to get the transplants they need, at a lower medical cost (Adams, Barnett, Kaserman). The heightened medical costs, anguish of waiting, and thousands of needlessly lost lives could all be remedied by a free market for human organs. The federal government prohibits the sale, as opposed to the donation, of human organs. Under the National Organ Transplant Act of 1984 (NOTA), it is a felony to give or receive compensation for them. Legalizing sales has been discussed in some circles, but proposals to let people sell their own organs as they see fit do not appear at the top of the list of most discussed issues, or anywhere close to the top (Jason). Recently, as the danger, rarity, and cost of organ transplants have gone down, the number of available organs has followed. The National Organ Transplant act was enacted in 1984 as a free market for organs began to arise in America. Congress was concerned about the injustice that could arise from impoverished donors being pressured into selling their organs (Ci... ... middle of paper ... ...o rules out medical and religious ethics. Many people are not willing to donate an organ if they do not receive any personal gain to it. However, many more people would be willing to donate if in turn they could save the life of a family member. Raja Mishra puts forward the idea of death row prisoners being able to donate an organ for a life sentence. This creates the argument that the race to meet the growing demand for organs is outweighing important moral values. Ethicists say this is a slippery slope and amounts to a de facto organ sale. But Mishra argues “it is a chance for murderers to give back exactly what they've taken: a life.” These valuable organs should not be allowed to needlessly go to waste in such a large shortage. The organs of these prisoners are valuable and could put a sizeable dent in the ever growing list of those needing organ donations.
In the essay “A Moral Solution to the Organ Shortage” by Alexander T. Tabarrok, Tabarrok presents the idea of paying organ donors and, or, only allowing registered organ donors to be able to receive an organ, in other words be compensated for the donation to help end the shortage. The essay’s thesis is, “Despite a prominent advertising campaign with Michael Jordan as spokesperson, and a national campaign of pastors, rabbis and other clergy supporting donation, the supply of donors remains far below that necessary to save everyone on the waiting list.”
Howards, Lawrence A. “Ethics of Organ Donation.” JSOnline Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 20 June 1999. p4. 30 November 2003. http://www.jsonline.com/alive/column/jun99/howard62099.asp>
Organ donation is defined as the donation of a biological tissue or organ of the human body, from a living or deceased person to a living recipient in need of a transplant. The removal of the organs is carried out in accordance with The Human Tissue Act (2004) who “regulate the removal, storage, use and disposal of the human bodies, tissues and organs”, (DOH ,2004).Organ donation is a complex issue, one which involves factors such as ethics, legal, organisational and societal factors. Much of the debate surrounding organ donation is the issue of consent /autonomy and trying to find ways to increase the number of potential organ donors. Do we choose to preserve the rights of the dead or those of people who are in pain? Across Europe they are two systems in practice, namely presumed consent (opt-out system) and informed consent (opt- in system).Although the two systems are different in practice, there main objective is the same, to increase the number of potential donors, which in turn would red...
It is clear that a large demand for organs exists. People in need of organ donations are transferred to an orderly list. Ordinarily, U.S. institutions have an unprofitable system which provides organs through a list of individuals with the highest needs; however, these organs may never come. A list is
There are laws against the sale of human organs around the world, but limited enforcement of these laws. If the patient is willing to pay for an organ that would save and potentially extend their life, there will always be a black market for organ donation. In addition, if the donor is living in poverty or below, if an organ trafficking ring approaches this person with a promise to a gr...
Organ transplantation is an amazing accomplishment of modern science which grants the recipient a prolonged life. Sadly, today the demand for organs is not being closely met, leading to the world’s organ shortage. Thus far, solutions aimed to increase organ donors have failed, which seems to have lead ultimately to what is referred to as the organ trade. With the problem of the organ shortage people have become desperate, to the point where they have come up with the solution of removing their own organs and even the organs of people who have been trafficked in order to sell them in the organ trade. Not only an ongoing problem in the United States, the organ trade is a problem being faced all over the world. Imagine going out with friends but waking up in a
Since the National Organ Transplant Act was signed in 1984, it has been illegal to buy and sell human organs for transplantation. Even after this act was put in place, there is still an ongoing debate about whether it should become legal and about the ethics that come along with such a practice. This debate proposes the question, should the selling and purchasing of organs be legalized and is there a way to make this practice ethical? The answer to that question is, no! It should not be legal because the buying and selling of organs is unethical due to its ability to create an economic class war, lead towards exploitation of the poor, and cause the qualities of organs to decrease.
The nature of organ allocation and transplantation raises a number of particular ethical issues and dilemmas, primarily because donated organs are a scarce resource that has the potential to dramatically improve the health and life of recipients. This scarcity of organs requires clear eligibility and allocation criteria to ensure a fair and equitable system for access to this limited resource.
Organ sales and donation are a controversial topic that many individuals cannot seem to agree upon. However, if someone close; a family member, friend, or someone important in life needed a transplant, would that mindset change? There are over one hundred and nineteen thousand men, women, and children currently waiting on the transplant list, and twenty-two of them die each day waiting for a transplant (Organ, 2015). The numbers do not lie. Something needs to be done to ensure a second chance at life for these individuals. Unfortunately, organ sales are illegal per federal law and deemed immoral. Why is it the government’s choice what individuals do with their own body? Organ sales can be considered an ethical practice when all sides of the story are examined. There are a few meanings to the word ethical in this situation; first, it would boost the supply for the
A Let me tell you a story. This story is about a boy. His name is James. James is 12 years old and since he was 8, he has been receiving dialysis treatments. For the last 4 years a kidney has not been available for a transplant. B The fact is that only one of every four patients each year receives the organ they need ( “Have a Heart”). C Unfortunately, a lot of people are in the same situation as James, and this because the only way for these people to get a kidney, is if someone were to willing give up their kidney, or if someone who is an organ donor happens to die. As medical practices increasingly get better with time the need for organ transplants increase as well, but the number of organs available is not increasing. D An easy way to help fix this problem is to simple make the buying and selling of organs legal. The legalization of human organ sales is a good idea because the number of patients in need of organs greatly outweighs the number of organs available, the failure rate of transplants from living donors is much less than that from dead donors, and
The U.S Department of Health and Human Services report that more than 123,000 people in the United States need an organ transplant to save their life (Hall, 2015). Only 45% of American adults are registered organ donors while 21 people die every day waiting for an organ transplant (Wen, 2014). With the help of organ sales, it would be possible to help more of those who are waiting for organs to save or prolong their life. An organ sale is the selling or trade of human organs, tissues or body parts for transplantation, in return for financial compensation. When most people think of organ sales, they think of someone selling their organs for a profit to benefit themselves, versus someone who is a donor, who donates their organs or body parts to benefit those who need transplants. This creates a discrepancy between selfishness and selflessness. Why is the sale of organs selfish if selling an organ for transplantation is beneficial to both the donor and the
One issue with organ transplantation is the difficulty to get a organ that is useable. It is hard for people to find usable organs that they can safely transplant into another individual. According to Caplan (2002) “Two basic strategies have been proposed to provide incentives for people to sell their organs when they die” (p. 2).
For decades organ transplants have saved the lives of countless patients in need. However, over time, the gap between the supply and demand of donated organs has alarmingly widened. The shortage of altruistic donors raises the argument of whether the United States government should legalize commercial transplantation. Ethical discussions exhibit polarized debates of the topic, however, to efficiently save money and lives, the selling of organs should be legal.
... will check to avoid all the risks that might occur. And according to professor Nadey Hakim, he believes that there should be a market for the organs instead of the black market (Smith, 2011). This idea will be lowering the problems of the black market or might even destroy the black market. It will be saving many lives and people will know were to go to get an organ they need that is safe without any consequences.
More than 110,000 people are on waiting lists for organs they may not ever get in time (mantel). This has caused an organ black market in which people are trading their or other individuals’ organs for illegal money. In case making criminals out of normal people. In 2009, the FBI arrested a Brooklyn rabbi for illegal organ trade, he was buying organs from overseas for a mere ten thousand dollars and selling here in the black market for upwards of one hundred sixty thousand (Krauthammer). An organ trade of some sort needs to become legal and people need chances to be compensated for their organs. Also with the market becoming legal, patients will be in better hands pre-operation and post-operation.