Essay about Organ Transplants for Prisoners - 1411 Words

In the article â€Å"Wanted, Dead or Alive? Kidney Transplants in Inmates Awaiting Execution†, Jacob M. Appel argues that, despite the criminal justice system’s view that death-row inmates deserve to die, they should be given the same opportunity to extend their life as anyone else. â€Å"The United States Supreme Court has held since 1976 that prison inmates are entitled to the same medical treatment as the free public† (645). â€Å"When it comes to healthcare, ‘bad people’ are as equal as the rest of us† (646). When someone is sentenced to execution it is decided by the criminal justice system, not the medical community. The justice system views these peoples’ social worth as so low that they deserve to die for the crimes they have committed. â€Å"The†¦show more content†¦The OPTN says that just because someone is in prison doesn’t mean they should not be considered for an organ transplant, the â€Å"screening for all potential recipients should be done at the candidacy stage and once listed, all candidates should be eligible for equitable allocation of organs† (648). On the basis of social worth, physicians shouldn’t discriminate by using social value as criteria for medical decisions. Sade says that psychosocial factors may be used as selection criteria, however, because they might shed light on whether or not adequate social support systems exi st for the transplant recipient. â€Å"The prison sentence is payment for the crime; the prisoner owes nothing more to society, certainly not his or her life† (647). The transplant center brings up the issue of money. When a non-prisoner has a transplant operation, they fund the surgery with the help of insurance and public health programs like Medicare and Medicaid. Prisoners have neither private nor public insurance aside from what the prison system has in their budget, so this begs the question, â€Å"should the prison pay for a heart transplant for a convicted criminal?† The answer is no. Most prison systems can only afford to provide general health care, but not the large amount of funds needed for a heart transplant. Sade says the bill for aftercare of a prisoner’s heart transplant done in California inShow MoreRelatedShould We Receive Organ Transplants?966 Words   |  4 Pagesmost dangerous deserve prior health care? It is debatable if prisoners should be placed on organs transplant waiting list or not. Prison officials in several states are mulling over two sides of the coin with respect to organ transplants for prisoners: First, the eligibility and cost of such medical procedure, and second whether prisoners should be allowed to donate their organs. Organ scarcity and the pressure to ensure that each organ is utilized to the best of its capability have led to the dominantRead MoreInmates and Organ Transplants: An Ethical Dilemma Essay864 Words   |  4 Pageswrong (Judson, Harrison, 2010). With that in mind, organ transplants for inmates has become a subject in which many people are asking questions as to whether it is morally right or wrong. In the ABC News article entitled Death-Row Inmates Seeks Organ Transplant by Bryan Robinson, the issue of a death-row prisoner in Oregon, by the name of Horacio Alberto Reyes-Camarena, receiving priority over a law-abiding citizen for a kidney transplant is being addressed. The state pays for Reyes-Camarena’sRead MoreOrgan Harvesting in China Essay1401 Words   |  6 Pagesthis caption under a photo he had taken to support his article. It was reported in the article how executed prisoners had become the primary source of body organ transplants. Still to this day in China, organs are being removed from the bodies of Falun prisoners without consent from anyone, to be used as donor organs for patients in need. The moment they find someone in need, the prisoners are immediately made victims. The process works something like this: In China, the hospital notifies you inRead MoreThe Punishment Of The United States1669 Words   |  7 Pages Inmate Christian Longo was convicted of the crimes he committed and he was on death row, he wrote an appeal to have his organs donated when he was executed, however he was denied. In an editorial by Longo put in the New York Times he said, â€Å"Eight years ago I was sentenced to death for the murders of my wife and three children. I am guilty. I once thought that I could fool others into believing this was not true. Failing that, I tried to convince myself that it didn’t matter. But, gradually, theRead MoreThe Global Problem of Harveting Organs1734 Words   |  7 PagesThe harvesting of organs is a huge problem worldwide. The sale of organs may result in an individual being murdered simply for his or her organs (Hongda.) In order to buy food impoverished families only choice may be to sell their organs (Callahan.) Those who are precipitants of organs coming from Inmates are taking huge health risk. Jeff Testerman, author of â€Å"Organs of Condemned sought for Transplantà ¢â‚¬ , stated â€Å"The prison population is such a high-risk group, particularly for hepatitis and AIDSRead MoreOrgan Donation Essay1469 Words   |  6 Pagesexample is the area of organ donation and transplantation. However, unlike many other technologies or procedures which can be built, manufactured, or learned, organ transplantation requires one thing that we can’t create yet: an organ itself. Because our increased life span causes more people to require a replacement organ when theirs starts to fail, the demand has far outrun the supply and the future only looks to get worse. â€Å"Between the years 1988 and 2006 the number of transplants doubled, but theRead MoreThe Death Of A Transplant Organ Transplant Essay1722 Words   |  7 PagesAccording to The American Transplant Foundation, more than 120,000 people in the United States are on the waiting list to receive a lifesaving organ transplant. Every 10 minutes a new name is added to the transplant waiting list a nd on average around 20 people die per day due to a lack of organ availability. The consistent high demand for organs and the shortage of donors in the United States has prompted a complex discussion on ways to close the gap. China, for example, has found a solution. TheyRead MoreOrgan Donation Case Study Essay967 Words   |  4 PagesOrgan Allocation Case Study: Correctional Healthcare Healthcare workers and the ethics board make tough decisions that impact the patient’s future, especially related to organ allocation. Organ transplantation is extremely important in order to save lives, prolong survival, and increase the quality of life (Beyar, 2017). Each year the number of people on the waiting list continues to rise at an alarming rate. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, organ donation statisticsRead MoreThe Key to Solving The American Organ Allocation Essay1665 Words   |  7 Pagesa South Carolina college student, died at the age of 23 while on the waiting list for a lung transplant. When Justin was three months old he was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, a disease which affects the lungs. Throughout his childhood he coped with his illness but at the age of 20 his health took a turn for the worst. Justin was on the waiting list for two years but no lungs came available in time. Organ allocation in the United States of Ameri ca has become a heavily debated subject in the medicalRead MoreAssignment 2 Essay1008 Words   |  5 Pagesjust decision. The utilitarian should argue that Roche had no control over how the organs were harvested. Knowing or not knowing where the organs were originating from wouldn’t be as important, as long as their end goal of saving lives would be completed. Rights are defined as individual entitlements to freedom of choice and well-being This may lead a rights based ethic to say that the prisoners from which the organs were being harvested could not be accepted because they were being held against their