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Presuming Consent, Presuming Refusal: Organ Donation and Communal Structure

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Abstract

Donating, distributing and ultimately transplantingorgans each has distinct ethical problems. In thispaper I suggest that the first ethical question is notwhat should be done but what is a fair way in whicheach of these problems can be addressed. Experts –whether these be transplant surgeons, policy analysts,political scientists or ethicists – can help guidebut cannot by themselves make such decisions. Inmaking these decisions the difference betweenidentified and non-identified lives is crucial. Isuggest that an approach in which reason is temperedby compassion (``compassionate rationality'') whendealing with identified lives and in whichcompassion is controlled by reason (``rationalcompassion'') in dealing with unidentified lives mustserve us well. Ultimately decisions of this sort areprone to sturdy democratic process which is possibleonly when the preconditions of person, economic andeducational democracy are met.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of California, Davis, CA, USA

    Erich H. Loewy

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  1. Erich H. Loewy
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Loewy, E.H. Presuming Consent, Presuming Refusal: Organ Donation and Communal Structure. Health Care Analysis 8, 297–308 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009412523248

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