Organ sales gain support
The Wall Street Journal has a long article about the growing (cautious) support for organ sales in the United States:
"There's one clear argument for sales," [transplant surgeon] Dr. [Arthur] Matas told a gathering of surgeons earlier this year. The practice, currently illegal in the U.S., "would increase the supply of kidneys, save lives and improve the quality of life for those with end-stage renal disease."
The doctor supports a regulated market only for kidneys, since live donors can give one up and survive without excessive health risks. (Transplants of other organs, such as livers and lungs, pose greater complications to a living donor.) And Dr. Matas doesn't rule out financial incentives for the families of deceased donors.
Among his opponents on the issue is a friend and colleague, Francis Delmonico. A Harvard University professor who has played a central role in shaping national transplant policy, the 62-year-old physician has several objections to organ sales. He fears such a system would attract the poor, vulnerable and unhealthy, and that altruistic donations might wither away.
"Payments eventually result in the exploitation of the individual," says Dr. Delmonico, who also worries about encouraging black-market sales both here and in developing countries. "It's the poor person who sells."
A few facts pulled from the the article by Laura Meckler:
+ Al Gore introduced the legislation banning organ sales in 1984
+ In 1988 there were 14,000 people on dialysis waiting for a kidney and 7000 deceased-donor kidneys. There are now more than five times that many people on the waiting list, yet just about the same number of available deceased-donor kidneys.
+ A dozen states offer tax deductions of up to $10,000 to help defray the costs of donating a kidney
+ Iran is the only country with a government-sanctioned organ market
It was interesting to read how many of the experts quoted in the story had an initial gut reaction to strongly oppose organ sales. But after thinking about it (often for years), that opposition began to soften, if not turn around.
-Greg Dahlmann
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I find it ironic that physicians scream 'market solution' but yet fight making public their fee schedule or quality ratings. Good forbid we should judge them as a commodity!
- by Frustrated Consumer on Nov 13, 2007 at 1:56 PM | link