In Need of Some Serious Cash Flow? Ever Consider Selling Your Kidney?
March 23rd, 2009
Submitted by: Ashley Breneman
Most of us have never known what it means to be poor. I know as college students we may feel constantly broke, but we never wonder if we will have the basic necessities to survive including food, water, and shelter. Many of us may be boggled down in student loans at the moment, but we have an understanding that these loans will be paid off soon enough after starting our careers.
A portion of the population in India has risen out of poverty in recent years due to the increases in job opportunities that have resulted from outsourcing. However, a large part of the population lives on just $2 a day and is living in unstable and crowded shanties. Many of these individuals also carry a heavy amount of debt with no way to repay them. This has caused men and women like Malika to resort to the unthinkable, selling their body parts for money.
See this National Geographic episode Woman Sells Her Body Parts describing Malika’s story and how her neighbor Raji ripped her off. Although the trading of body parts is illegal in India, it continues to occur because of back-alley brokers, corrupt officials, doctors and desperate individuals. The Indian government passed Act 42: The Transplantation of Human Organs Act in order to block the trade of human organs. This Act prohibits all commercial trading of body parts and allows organs to be removed only for therapeutic purposes. A few problems exist with this law. The first problem is that the last clause allows the law to be manipulated. Who is to say which kidneys were removed for therapy and which were not? The second problem results from the fact that many states have not yet adopted this act.
The buying and selling of human organs is a highly controversial issue. Before making a decision on whether you think this black market should continue, here are a few matters to think about:
If law continues and is strongly enforced:
-The number of people who may die without the kidneys from India
-Citizens in the U.S. are paying upwards of $40,000 and the donors are only receiving about $3,000 of this
-Indians will likely continue to sell kidneys; which may result in decreased medical care for the donors
If trade becomes legalized:
-Donors may get to see a larger portion of the money
-Many lives will be saved
-Indians will be able to repay debt and/or have the money necessary to support their family
In my opinion, I believe the market will continue as long as there are desperate Indians wanting to rise out of poverty and a continued demand from foreigners. In this case, I believe it is much more safe for the donor’s health to have the procedure done in a clean environment as opposed to some back alley shack. The ultimate decision should come down to the donor as long as they are not forced into the situation.
Interestingly enough, the body parts trade is not only limited to India. China is currently engaging in the trade, but in a much more invasive and unethical way. Chinese nationals have been executing prisoners with their prime agenda being to harvest and sell their organs. Contrary to the law of India, China has no opposition to the body parts trade as long as the donations are voluntary. Clearly this is not the case with the prisoners. See this related article in the Times Body Parts for Sale.
What are your thoughts of this thriving market in both China and India?
Entry Filed under: India, Pre-Departure
18 Comments Add your own
1. Emily Schaapveld | December 28th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
Legalize it, for the health and safety of the donors and the transplantees. If there is no solution for controlling the black market for organ trade, then the best option is to legalize it. That way, it can be regulated to ensure fair pay to the donors and reduce the risk of severe health complications resulting prodedures being performed in unsafe environments.
2. Lindsay Leaver | January 9th, 2010 at 7:26 pm
Theoretically, legalizing the trade will increase the safety of the procedures, cut out many of the middle men, and give the donors the money deserve for giving away a vital organ. There may also be an opportunity to add a slight tax to the procedure and generate some government revenue.
But practically, even if it is legalized, it strikes me as the type of business that will never be completely legitimized. The black market will still exist even if a legal market emerges. With something as dangerous as extracting organs, the government needs to be really careful. There will be a host of regulations placed on the clinics, doctors, donors, and receivers involved. People who don’t want to abide by these standards will keep selling illegally.
The solution to the problem is much deeper than legalizing the organ trade, it is raising the standard of living so less people feel the need to sell one of their internal organs. Then the problem goes away all together, or at least shrinks significantly.
3. Erika Bylund | January 25th, 2010 at 4:37 pm
In thinking about the ethics of organ harvesting, I thought about how it compares to blood donation. Why is it acceptable for people to trade their blood for money? It’s just as vital to health as a kidney or a liver. And in a more gruesome-but theoretical-scenario, if the Chinese kept the prisoners alive and “harvested” their blood, they could probably have a renewable source of the biological commodity. But I can’t shake my own personal feeling that kidney harvesting is unethical and selling your own kidney-by choice- sounds desperate.
In college, I joined the bone marrow registry. They took a blood sample and logged me in a computer so that if I they had a patient that needed a marrow transplant with my blood type, I could be contacted to donate marrow. What if an organ database like this was set up for individuals who wanted to sell their organs. A blood sample could be taken to assess blood type compatibility and if a patient came up, you could be contacted to donate your organ. They could fly the patient, whether from India, China, or the U.S., on a temporary visa with expenses paid by the donee. Of course, the donor could be paid a fee negotiated by an “escrow” service. This might be one way to approach a solution.
4. Jason Silver | January 26th, 2010 at 4:54 pm
I think there is greater distinction between organ harvesting for money and the sale of blood. An organ is a scarcer resource than a pint of blood. Every day our body produces 100,000,000,000 new blood cells, which keeps a steady circulation of blood flow in our bodies. There is even enough blood in our bodies that we can donate some for people who really need it. Blood donation is voluntary and philanthropic in nature. The sale of organs is a means of earning money which families are desperate for. The money you get from donating is very minimal and in no way, a tactic to rise out of poverty. In the case of selling organs in India, it should be legalized as to curb the unfair profiteering and the hazards affiliated with the black market conditions.
5. Jay Ponto | February 19th, 2010 at 12:02 pm
I completely agree with Jason that comparing the sale of blood to the sale of organs is not a completely fair comparison.
At this moment, I support the legalized selling of organs. As Emily wrote, if it is going to be done anyway, then it might as well be done safely. Technically, we own our organs, much like we own a car or a house, and we should have the right to sell them. Plus, allowing people to sell their organs will decrease the number of deaths for people in need of organs (there is always a short supply).
6. William Ary | February 21st, 2010 at 8:06 pm
Legalize it. People will always find a way to get what they want if their price is right. Better to have it come through official channels with the benefit of quality control, government oversight and fair trade than through the underground where there are no rules. This is equivalent to the illegal drug trade. Both are damaging to individuals in their respective countries but also provide a lot of income to those willing to risk it. I say let people do whatever they want with their own bodies as long as it does not hurt anyone else. People have the right to make up their own minds whether their organs are worth selling, not leave it up to high handed ethics boards or the ruling elite.
7. Phil Hamer | February 26th, 2010 at 3:32 pm
One more vote for legalizing it, and to take it one step further, legalize it in America also.
I never really understood why the donations that require the least amount of sacrifice pay so much more than those that require more like blood or kidney donations. When I was a Freshman in college I funded my dating life by selling my plasma twice a week. I would have liked to give blood, but because I wasn’t compensated for it and it would have meant that I couldn’t donate plasma for two more months I never did.
I would have to be very desperate to donate a kidney and the price would definitely have to be right, but I think it should be out there as an option. I can think of many more disgraceful ways to earn money that are legal. Knowing how long the donation lists are for people on dialysis it would only save lives.
The cost of getting a kidney transplant or a blood transfusion is extremely high, so why not legally and in a safe and protected environment give the person who is saving a life some compensation?
8. Tim Lynds | March 3rd, 2010 at 9:34 pm
I agree that people should be able to do what they want with their bodies and should be able to sell an organ if they truly want to. With that said, I have some reservations about making it completely legal because it sounds like a lot of the donors are just completely desperate to get cash that they will do anything to get it. Selling an irreplaceable organ may sound like an ok idea when you are starving and desperate, but it is something you may regret later? If you do end up regretting it there is nothing you can do about it.
This is what I am worried about: A donor donates a kidney so that he or she can eat. The donor is very poor and lives a hard and probably less healthy life than that of someone who has more money. Because of his or her lifestyle the donor is at a greater risk of disease and health problems. The donor develops kidney problems from eating poorly but only has one kidney left. The kidney fails and there is no way in hell that the donor can afford to buy another one. The donor dies prematurely.
One can argue that the donor would have died early anyway from starvation if they did not sell their kidney. But if selling organs were illegal maybe the donor would have thought twice about the transaction and may have found an alternative way to get money or food.
A final thought. In response to Phil’s comment about more disgraceful ways to earn money, sure they may be more disgraceful but are they as unhealthy? Maybe, maybe not.
9. Kirk Story | March 3rd, 2010 at 11:33 pm
I don’t know guys. I read the comments and I understand the ‘legalize it’ argument. But geez, I don’t know. Selling organs? I would hope we can find other ways to help people out of poverty than facilitating the auction of their body parts.
10. John Barry | March 4th, 2010 at 1:00 pm
I’m all for legalizing the sale of practically all things sold through illegal means such as the black market. While I don’t think that anyone should have the right to bear arms, (seeing as how the “quality” of human beings is not a constant), so long as guns are in existance, their sale must be legalized in order to control the amount of illegal activity involved in the acquisition of such life robbing tools. By this same token, while I agree that it is highly unfortunate that some people must sell body parts to get out of stick situations they might find themselves in, it is their body, and so long as there is a free and legal market for organs, the regulation sure to be imposed on such sales will serve mostly to protect all parties involved in the transaction, resulting in higher consumer surplus’, and more saved lives.
11. Jordan Wente | March 4th, 2010 at 6:05 pm
Wow that is crazy. I would have never thought of this as a way to pull out of poverty. The law does leave some room for manipulation. The conditions of these transactions does in fact need to be improved however is this the kind of image India and China want to portray as they develop into major players in the international community? In essence this is saying that its comparable to the issue of abortion, that it should be the choice of the individual and what’s right for their body. The market may continue but there has to be a better option than to legalize it. These kinds of transactions go on all over the world but I think the major issue remains the ethical implications for the country if it condones such transactions. The benefits are substantial to legalizing organ trade and may have a significant impact on the lives of many but even if the donor willingly donates he is still engaging in the transaction out of force. It may not be violent force but the dire economic situation leading to the decision is still a form of coercion. What happens when a family member is dying and could be saved if you donated an organ but you have already given yours away? How will this affect the medical community in the country and doctors reputations? It is defiantly a loaded issue.
12. Michael Minasian | March 10th, 2010 at 11:10 am
This is definitely a personal morality issue. I personally think that is is not morally acceptable to sell human organs regardless of the conditions. This issue has come to the forefront recently. There is even a movie being made about it.
There is a movie called Repo Men which will of course be highly hollywoodized, but it is interesting that this issue has made its way all the way into popular culture.
Trailer is here: http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/universal/repomen/
13. Frederick Peemoeller | March 12th, 2010 at 7:55 pm
As Americans we live off of fear. We lock our doors and don’t go for a jog at night because we are afraid of that unlikely chance that someone will hurt us. That sort of mentality is why legalizing the trade of donors should be done. What would stop a robber from not only take your wallet but render you unconscious and bring you to a place to have your kidney removed? If they legalized the selling of organs, organ prices will surely rescind since there will be more of them. That would ensure that criminals would not find it economical to risk a kidnapping to take an organ, because they wouldn’t get that much for it. Although this question always strikes an ethical opinion, economically it does make sense.
14. Chase Janvrin | March 14th, 2010 at 3:54 pm
A touchy subject indeed! Theoretically I’m for legalizing just about everything, choosing to believe that crime will always find a way to fulfill demand. I liken the dilemma of legalizing organ farming closer to abortion than to blood donation. Basically, if it’s going to happen anyway, we might as well make it safe (if anyone happens to read this response I’m sure this comment will bring up a whole new argument.) However, I’m not entirely sure that legalizing organ harvesting is a good idea. Of course there are crimes that should never be legalized; murder, rape, and….human trafficking. I would argue that there isn’t a safe and sound way to legalize human trafficking, at least not to the point where the benefits outweigh the negatives. I don’t know if there’s a safe way to legalize organ farming either. The difference in financial position between those that take, and those that give, is just too great. Even if it was legalized the opportunity to take advantage is simply too great. This is one of those unfortunate aspects of the modern world that I don’t think has a good solution.
15. Leslie Mann | March 18th, 2010 at 12:32 am
Organs sold now? What’s next for the future? I’m scared to think. I completely agree with Chase on this that even if it were legalized people would still take advantage and a black market will continue to prosper in the back alleys of India. I am by no means entirely relating the two, but I can’t seem to help mentioning the legalization of medicinal marijuana. Just because a commodity is now legal, doesn’t mean it will stop being sold illegally without any government regulations imposed. Money talks so if the highest bidder is speaking your language, then what’s to stop the wealthiest from buying these organs and re-selling them? How does the donor know that their organ is going to the ‘right’ person? Well obvious questions like this don’t matter when money is involved. These are not organ “donations” but organs being “sold.” The two are completely different.
Government regulation or not, people will find a way to sell their organs if money is involved and the desperation is great enough. This is where the true problem lies as many have previously touched on. The fact that its citizens are poor enough to sell their own organs for money, speaks of a deeper social and economic issue and until problems like these are relieved somewhat, people like Malika will continue to sell what they can of ‘themselves’ and people like Raji will continue to rip donors off for profit.
16. Vitus Holzner | March 18th, 2010 at 6:20 pm
This post reminds of a comment Hemanth made in class last week about people being poor in America. He said something along the lines of “You people have no idea what poor means!” Of course he put it more eloquently but that was the bottom line of his statement. Well I have to say I couldn’t agree more. We talk about being poor if we can’t afford a 46” Plasma TV. So we are talking about people who sell their body parts because they are so desperate, that is what I call real poverty.
With regards to the discussion of legalization I strongly disagree with the majority. I don’t believe that giving in only because it’s hard to control is the right way. I think with this particular issue we should focus on how to solve the problem that makes people want to sell their organs in the first place.
17. Matthew Perez | March 19th, 2010 at 9:30 am
Although I see validity in the legalization of organ trafficking based upon the points provided in the blog as well as the responses (difficult to control, ensure the safety of donors, etc.), I have side with Vitus on this one. It is easy to claim that things will improve for donors if organ selling is legalized but what kind of slippery slope does this lead us down? Does that mean it is alright to sell ourselves into indentured servitude simply because it was something we agreed with? Part of the reasons laws are in place is to not only protect people from others but to protect us from ourselves. Without the sense of structure that laws provide, people would be more inclined to make foolish decisions. Libertarians might argue that people have the right to do whatever they want as long as they are not hurting other but when do the actions of one person not affect others? No person is an island; any actions taken that bring a detriment to you will also in some way bring harm to others.
18. Chris Phippen | March 19th, 2010 at 3:49 pm
I’m with Vitus on the American perception of poverty. We really have no idea until we travel abroad and get a glimpse, and even then, we won’t truly know what poverty is.
As far as the legalization argument, I’m sure there are elements of the issue that I can’t think of right now, as it is a very complex moral/practical/economical issue. That said, I’d say legalize it. If for no other reason, for the health and safety of the donors as well as the recipients. I agree with Emily, if the government can’t control the rampant black market for organs, the best option is to legalize it. As Lindsay mentioned, there may even be a tax opportunity if the government legalized and regulated the trade. Does anyone else feel like they’ve heard this argument before?
Leave a Comment
Some HTML allowed:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>
Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed