preview

Illegal Sale Of Human Organs

Decent Essays

Sale of human organs have been illegal in the U.S. since the National Organ Transplant Act of 1984 was established, but illegal sale of organs still exist on the black market. The black market is where desperate wealthy people can make contact with unscrupulous greedy criminals to secure themselves a kidney or any other type of human organ they may need. The idea that a person’s organ can be purchased online or through a dealer like a car is unethical and objectionable. Potential causes for the thriving black market and criminal activity is the dwindling supply of donated organs and the higher demand for organ transplants, along with the desperation of both the donor and the organ recipient.
The crisis surrounding the shortages of transplant organs are not in dispute. In 1988, there were fewer than 14,000 patients waiting for a kidney transplant and about 7,000 deceased-donor kidneys. Today, the waiting list has grown more than five times that amount but the number of deceased-donor kidneys has barely changed. The demands for organs are considerably much higher than the supply (Meckler, 2007). At this moment, there are more than 105,000 people in the U.S. alone that are currently on the organ donation waiting list, and more than 6,500 of these people, or about eighteen per day, will die before an organ becomes available to them through donation. (Dale Archer, 2013). There have always been more people in need of a transplant, than those willing to donate. This shortage of

Get Access