An
average of 18 people die each day waiting for transplants that can’t take place
because of the shortage of donated organs; and that number is increasing. What
can we do to decrease the number of deaths and help people that need organ
transplants? There is one alternative that is currently illegal in the United
States and currently debated as well. This alternative is the selling of a
living person’s organs.
There
are many arguments in the support of a person being able to sell their organs. One
argument is “that if our bodies are ours to manage, we should be able to decide
to sell our organs” (Forbes). Another argument being that financial incentive
will increase the supply of organs and will essentially eliminate the organ
waiting list. Why shouldn’t we support these two arguments? They will save many
lives that would not otherwise be saved because the person passes away before
there is an organ for them to receive. Other countries have seen success in
offering money in order to get someone to donate an organ. In the Philippines,
organ sales are permitted and the market is successful. Prices for organs are
even going up there. There are some other countries who also permit organ sales
under certain conditions.
However,
there are many reasons that people don’t support the idea of a person being
able to sell their organs. The first reason people don’t support selling of
organs is because it would exploit the poor. If there is money involved, they
are sure to be one of the first groups to adhere to the conditions of organ
donation and get the reward. Right now, the underground market exploits the
desperation of both buyers and sellers. Also, if you think about it, doctors
and nurses would be using their skills in order to help people harm themselves
just for money. This would result in a loss of professional standards and
ethics. There has also been research done that live organ sellers, specifically
kidney sellers, aren’t necessarily “unharmed” after the process. It has been
said that many suffer from chronic pain, depression, suicide, self-hatred,
anger, regret, and many other negative feelings (Washington Post). Many
uneducated, lower-class people may also lose their job after surgery because of the
consequences of selling their organ.
With
this being said, the ethical issue of selling organs is still under debate but
remains illegal in the United States. Clearly something needs to be done in
order to decrease the organ waitlist and save lives, but what should we do? How
should we go about doing this without harming one person in order to save
another?
Citations
Clark, M. (2013, June 14). Selling Your Organs: Should it be Legal? Do You Own Yourself? Retrieved November 06, 2017, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/marciaclark/2013/06/13/selling-your-organs-should-it-be-legal-do-you-own-yourself/#6f692d417281
Scheper-Hughes, N. (2016, January 05). Opinion | The market for human organs is destroying lives. Retrieved November 06, 2017, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in-theory/wp/2016/01/05/the-market-for-human-organs-is-destroying-lives/?utm_term=.f445dc28cb0f
Wilkinson, S. (2011, October 17). The Sale of Human Organs. Retrieved November 06, 2017, from https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/organs-sale/#SavLiv
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ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting view point you have offered. Financially this would open up many avenues that could pose a large threat to patients, doctors, hospitals, and ethics. Though I do see the potential benefits within this proposed system there are also many risks. For example, financially companies could create a system to maximize the "best" organ sales to occur. Theses companies would ultimately decide the amount of financial gain offered to the seller and the financial cost of the organ to the buyer. This could create a large issue if insurance companies refused to pay. Additionally, prices of all products fluctuate depending on supply and demand this fluctuation would no doubt have an impact on the price of organ sells as well. Medically though, a system designed to screen individuals for specific criteria that would determine the ability to sell an organ. This criteria could assess both physical and mental health of an organ seller thus eliminating a large portion of post surgical issues. Ultimately a large issue that would need to be overcome would be the safe procurement of these organs that would prevent harm to the seller. Though this maybe a very controversial topic I would agree with the choice to commence with such operations only if all criteria and risks were established, known, and met.
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