Comments on: Should We Pay Organ Donors? http://www.pizaazz.com/2008/10/16/should-we-pay-organ-donors/ Healthcare News & More Tue, 31 Aug 2010 05:05:29 -0700 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Dave Undis http://www.pizaazz.com/2008/10/16/should-we-pay-organ-donors/comment-page-1/#comment-3 Dave Undis Fri, 17 Oct 2008 18:01:32 +0000 http://www.pizaazz.com/?p=852#comment-3 Paying organ donors would save thousands of lives every year. As the organ shortage continues to grow, public opinion will eventually support a legal organ market and changes in public policy will follow. In the mean time, there is an already-legal way to put a big dent in the organ shortage -- allocate donated organs first to people who have agreed to donate their own organs when they die. The United Network for Organ Sharing, which manages the national organ allocation system, has the power to make this simple policy change. No legislative approval is required. 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. Americans who want to donate their organs to other registered organ donors don't have to wait for UNOS to act. They can join LifeSharers, 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. Paying organ donors would save thousands of lives every year. As the organ shortage continues to grow, public opinion will eventually support a legal organ market and changes in public policy will follow.

In the mean time, there is an already-legal way to put a big dent in the organ shortage — allocate donated organs first to people who have agreed to donate their own organs when they die. The United Network for Organ Sharing, which manages the national organ allocation system, has the power to make this simple policy change. No legislative approval is required.

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.

Americans who want to donate their organs to other registered organ donors don’t have to wait for UNOS to act. They can join LifeSharers, 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 http://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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