Warnija Smith
March 5, 2015
Public Health Law
Organ Market

The shortage of organs being donated to patients in dire need is and has been a never ending crisis since recycling of organs became possible. So much so that whether or not there should be a legal market for human organs should not even be in question. What I mean is numbers don’t lie and statistics speak loud and clear. Out of the nearly three million American that suffer from congestive heart failure, about 250,000 die every year. Every year about 27,000 Americans die of liver failure. Don’t these high numbers speak to donors and potential organ donors? This is only a small sample of the death total of the world due to the shortage of donated organs. Although the numbers of people dying each year clearly speak for themselves, selling organs are still seen as big State and Federal issues. I firmly believe that organs should be sold in order to help many people sitting on an endless waiting list prosper for many more years.
There are people who may wonder if it is ethical to put a price on organs. They question the morals of those willing to buy or sell organs. Some even just question the morals of organ donation period. This brings me to question these people with, what if it was you or one of your relatives in need? Would you support it then? Or what if you knew that being a support of organ donation could save thousands of lives yearly and millions worldwide in the long run? When you understand the fact most people are naturally reluctant to donate their own organs to save others, you either tend to think they are selfish or just need the incentive to do so. After all for every 100,000 transplant operations needed each year, only 10,000 are performed .That’s only a staggering 10%!
Creating a market for human organs will not only compensate those people kind-hearted enough to be volunteer donors, but it will perhaps greatly increase the supply of organs readily available for transplant. In today’s society money is the ultimate incentive for anyone to provide any kind of product or service. Increasing donation rates is the whole reason for even bringing up the concept of a legal organ market. Most people don’t really oppose donations, they usually just afraid, have doubts about their preferences, don’t really like to think of the subject, or simply the inconvenience of having to obtain and carry a