Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Kidney Theft
When somebody can make a buck by going to India and stealing some poor guy's kidney then yeah, it's time for reform of the organ donation system. A market is one way to go, if you think it's okay to make a buck off an organ as long as it's procured legally. Another method might be for the government to pay donors or their families for their organs. Or there's the approach Britain is considering adopting, instituting presumed consent and requiring people to opt-out of the organ donation system. But a system in which thousands die each year for want of organs that are simply put in the ground to rot, something has to be done.
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Over half of the 98,000 Americans on the national transplant waiting list will die before they get a transplant. Most of these deaths are needless. Americans bury or cremate about 20,000 transplantable organs every year. Over 6,000 of our neighbors suffer and die needlessly every year as a result.
There is a simple way to put a big dent in the organ shortage -- give organs first to people who have agreed to donate their own organs when they die.
Giving organs first to organ donors will convince more people to register as organ donors. It will also make the organ allocation system fairer. People who aren't willing to share the gift of life should go to the back of the waiting list as long as there is a shortage of organs.
Anyone who wants to donate their organs to others who have agreed to donate theirs can join LifeSharers. LifeSharers is a non-profit network of organ donors who agree to offer their organs first to other organ donors when they die. Membership is free at www.lifesharers.org or by calling 1-888-ORGAN88. There is no age limit, parents can enroll their minor children, and no one is excluded due to any pre-existing medical condition.
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