A Dubious Argument For Regulating Organ Donation

Here's someone trying to make the case for regulating the organ donor industry as a cost-saving measure. Well, perhaps this is preferable to the growing black market in organs, but regulation brings its own pitfalls and ethical dilemmas.

Shockingly Simple: Regulated organ market actually a feasible idea

Every day in the US, 20 people waiting for organs die on the wait list without receiving the organs they need to survive.

Different countries have tried several methods to encourage organ donation, from increasing infrastructure and access to organ donation services to both direct and indirect compensation for organ donors.

The London-based Nuffield Council on Bioethics recently recommended paying funeral expenses for donors to incentivize organ donation without directly purchasing a person's organs.

The system would not only increase organ donation and save lives, but also save money since the average British funeral costs around $11,000, but an organ donation saves taxpayers roughly $20,000 by eliminating the need for costly dialysis. A similar system could work in the U.S. where Medicare spends billions on dialysis annually. more