As much as I believe in organ donation, and as much as I lament the lack of transplantable organs, I have to oppose this proposal.

Look, I'm not saying we need more body-snatching, obviously. What we need is a policy - already law in 20 countries - called "presumed consent."

Presumed consent simply presumes that once you die, you consent to have your body parts given to the living, unless you have specifically indicated otherwise.
From Singapore to Spain to Sweden and Italy, it's a done deal. Anyone who does not want to donate simply joins a national registry of those "opting out." They get "opt out" cards to carry.

Here in America, however, our posthumous policy is exactly the opposite: The government presumes you don't want to donate. If, however, you do, you have to "opt in" by signing a space on your driver's license and/or talking about it with your next of kin. Since most people don't bother to sign anything and are disinclined to discuss the disposal of their bodies in any event, we don't have the 98% participation rate that presumed-consent countries like Spain have.

The short answer is that my body belongs to me. It is not government property, to be disposed of by government dictate after I die. If I choose to donate my organs (and I do – I signed up for organ donation when I got my first driver’s license, and have signed every renewal since then), that is my decision – but if I choose to take them to my grave I should be permitted to do so without having to overcome some government hurdle.

And in this case, unlike in the case of abortion, the mantra of “my body, my choice” is actually accurate.

Posted by: Greg at 02:05 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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