Many have been focusing on Gary Becker and his works on explaining social issues with the economic approach. Often Becker comes up with a answer counterintuitive to what the social norm of the activity. I'd like to present a subject that might have a spur an interesting debate: organ sales. Becker first presents data from the year 2000 in which fifty thousand persons are on the waiting list for a kidney and only fifteen thousand kidney transplant operations were performed. The average time to wait on this operation is about four years. Liver transplant wait time is even worse. Almost three thousand people died on the waiting list for kidney transplant and add around thousand more for deaths while waiting on livers. Becker looks at other options to maximize this market. The first option would be opt in and opt out programs in developed countries that can utilize cadaveric organ donor to attempt to lessen the deadweight loss of transplants. The more interesting approach would be to legalize the sale of organs in a free market system. In a free market system, prices would settle at levels that would eliminate excess demand for any type of organ. Becker predicts that the going rate of a kidney probably would be around $15,000 and about $35,000 for a liver. This seems like a high price level for an organ but considering that the going rate currently for a kidney is $100,000 and a liver is $175,000 it would seem like the equilibrium price would decrease drastically. The black market of organs sales could take the route of drug sales in colorado. In which although there is a black market for the product it would be easier to go through legal channels because of the lowered risk of legal consequences.
An interesting consequence of legalizing the sale of organs would be would people give up their organs because of altruism.
My question to this blog is would you give up your organs to benefit someone in need or to gain financially as you have two kidneys and $15,000 for a kidney might be great paycheck. Who would benefit in the market of organs and what would the cost be on society?
I think this is an interesting topic/controversy that you present. I personally would probably give up an organ if someone in my family or if someone I love needed it to survive. I am not 100% aware of all of the consequences of donating an organ but if I needed to I would definitely look into it. I think in a broader sense people would start donating organs just to receive the money but I'm not so sure that that is a bad thing. I think it would help society in terms of more people on the waiting list receiving organs that they need because more people are willing to give up their organs for that price (depending on the price). There might also probably be less illegal activity of selling organs if it were to be legal. Some may argue that it is unethical to legalize selling one's organs and a negative that I do see is that the cost of legalizing the sale of organs may be that the poor have a difficult time purchasing an organ. Only the rich could probably afford the price of an organ causing anybody who couldn't afford the price to die. There are definitely both pros and cons to the legalization of the selling of organs.
ReplyDeleteI would question whether some type of broker would be created to line buyers and sellers together in the marketplace. If this type of activity were to happen could it be suggested that just because rich people could find organs to buy at premium prices, poor people could buy at below standard prices. Also I would wonder if the government could create organ loans of some type in which they could tax on or social security could pick up the tab on a part of the payment. In going in line with all of my normative questions I would also ask if the American population and the global population would be ready for this type of market and how regulated would it become.
ReplyDeleteI think if the legalization of the sale of organs did happen, then the government would most likely offer assisted programs in order for poor people to be able to afford an organ. I don't know if the American people would be ready for this market, as some may argue that it is unethical to sell your organs. I think there are so many different viewpoints on this topic that it is hard to tell if the American population would be ready for the arrival of this market. I think this issue would turn into just another social issue that both political parties would debate on.
DeleteThe American people definitely are not ready for this type of market. There is so much controversy that can come out of this type of market and I agree with Samantha that it would just become another political debate. I think the system in place right now is the most ethical way of going about who gets and doesn't get an organ, but a less ethical system like the one you are suggesting could be more efficient. I also think that the government would have a hard time really being able to regulate who is selling organs where and for how much. The black market is the only real market for organs right now, and it is a very profitable market for those people involved. If the government was trying to produce a new market, I think they would have a tough time competing with those markets and their calling card would have to be their price and availability.
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