It seems illegal I guess, by method, but I'm a little confused.
What is so wrong with selling organs?
If some kind of government weird laundering was involved, I guess that makes it illegal, and therefore corrupt somehow.
But I don't understand why selling organs is so unethical or wrong. For one thing, all kinds of medical services and parts are "sold" in the U.S. every day, and this is a capitalist society where it's not frowned upon.
No doctor or parts person is just giving them away for free, or not charging someone. If there was public health for everyone, and some people got organs ahead of others because they had more money, it would seem unfair. But here in the U.S., the whole thing is that it's incentive--if you have money, you are rewarded by being able to afford things others cannot afford.
Why should every other medical service and part be bought, but not organs? We even buy cemetary lots for a place to put dead bodies.
It doesn't seem right that some should get organs ahead of others, because they can pay for it, but I still don't see where it's really illegal.
If I could get $10,000 right now, for selling an organ, I would probably do it myself and it's my own body and I should be able to choose what I do with it.
I guess the issue is more about the way the business was being conducted? or what channels someone was going through?
I wonder what the Rabbi's did with the money, with the $160,000 per part. Did it go to charity? or did they personally pocket the money?
If someone was buying a car in Israel from a person, for $10,000, and then selling it in the U.S. for $160,000 because there is a shortage of cars and some are desperate to drive and can afford the car where others can't, that seems to be no problem. We have a capitalist system and there is nothing wrong with someone getting ahead of others.
So I don't get it. I don't understand how it's wrong to do this.
If someone was using public officials to negotiate better deals for some people, then I would think those public officials should be held accountable, but a pastoral person isn't a public official in the strict sense of the word.
I know it's horrible when you hear about these kids who are dying because their insurance won't cover a kidney transplant so their kid dies. I think everyone should get a fair chance at life.
Yet the way our system is set up, or the way the world is in general, doesn't allow for that.
We pay people for blood plasma donations in the U.S. So we pay individuals to part themselves out.
I don't understand how selling organs then is so bad.
Is it because of lack of regulations or safety or something? Maybe that's it, that no one oversees the transportation and storage or inspection?
Whether it's a group of private people, or religious of any kind, I just don't know where the wrongdoing is except maybe in lack of outside inspection because if everyone did this, someone's health or safety could be at risk because proper safeguards are not in place.
One other thing, is I was thinking maybe it put someone ahead of the waiting list in the U.S. but it wouldn't. It would actually be reducing the waiting list because the organs were from another country.
I guess maybe the issue is not the actual sale but the lack of safeguards and/or failure to pay taxes on the sale? It seems a little more like an IRS matter or something. I mean, lack of inspection would be health department and lack of paid taxes would be IRS.
I guess if there were public officials involved in hiding this, then that would be public corruption because they'd be doing things that benefit a special interest type of group. I don't know.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
Blood, plasma, hair can regrow - there are regenerative. However, all other organs are not. Congress made national laws prohibiting the sale of organs in order to avoid a corrupt market - you know, drugging people, and removing a kidney to sell, while leaving them in a bathtub of ice with a note to seek medical help immediately? Or to "pull the plug" early on terminal or comatose patients in order to remove organs and thus procure a sale. To maintain some ethics in this medical department, it is illegal to sell organs. Although private inurement is illicit, one may be compensated for medical costs, loss of wages, etc. depending on the situation. Check out the Human Tissue Act 2004 for more details and the law, if interested.
Also - some cases in court have questioned a doctor's ethics in terminating life support when the patient could have lived...in order to get organs. Organs are BIG business - although they can't be bought nor sold, the surgeon makes quite a pretty penny, as do drug companies by selling anti-rejection drugs, and of course there are "rumored" kick backs (which some have been found to not be "rumored" where docs get kick backs from pharmaceutical companies for prescribing certain drugs...
What is going on with the Rabbi? Some Jewish sects prohibit donating an organ as one is supposed to leave the earth the way in which he/she came...do you know if he was Reform, Conservative, Orthodox, Hasidic?
I was referring to the NJ corruption bust, as they call it, where they just arrested a bunch of Rabbis and public officials for doing this. I don't know which sect because I haven't followed very closely, but I would guess conservative from the photos. I think Hasidic has longer beards or sideburns and wears a different hat or something. These guys don't look like liberal Rabbis, but I could be wrong. I don't know.
Thanks for your explanation. I didn't understand the difference at all. I can see why the Human Tissue Act is in place now. It makes better sense to me.
Yes, and I agree that termination in order to get organs probably happens sometimes. It's why I'm not especially in favor of euthenasia, because of this. Or just wanting to get rid of someone but I think people deserve higher quality pain control because I know what I went through in trying to get appropriate control for my pain levels without being tagged inappropriately. I don't think anyone should have to suffer.
by the way, you're very articulate. are you a lawyer? what was your major? you make good sense and write well.
Thank you! I majored in psychology and do practice law. I decided that becoming a therapist was not the right direction for me, and that I could do more good as a lawyer. Although I am not personally an expert, my father runs pharmaceutical industries internationally, so I can relate to both sides of the spectrum. I see you are not for euthanasia - it's understandable. Are you against active or passive or both? I had a relative with ALS who had passive euthanasia (taken off life support) after suffering for 20 years. I also know someone with RSD, and sometimes dying is the only relief. It's sad, and quite a multi faceted issue.
Check out this ABC article about doctors removing organs before patients are dead: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/10/20/2396360.htm
Crazy world we live in!
they just arrested a bunch of Rabbis and public officials for doing this.
False. They arrested 44 people for corruption, of all ethnicities.
They happened to find that one of them, an ultra-orthodox (NOT a rabbi) was doing organ-donor/organ-recipient matching for a fee, which is illegal in the USA though not in many other countries (including India and China).
I don't understand what the fellow's religion has got to do with it. His religion is irrelevant.
I wasn't the one to make any "point" about religion. I got the information from the news and every single photo taken was of guys with yamikas on their heads and the press kept saying "rabbis". So please do not insinuate I was taking a particular clergy or faith out of context or magnifying it. I wrote down the news exactly as I read it but thank you for your clarifications because you could probably take it up with the Associated Press instead of me.
Post a Comment