Should you be able to sell your body?

[FlyingNarwhal]

So c172's thread on organ transplants got me thinking, should you be able to sell your body in every sense of the word? Right now it is illegal to sell your own body parts if you chose to, even though it is your body. If I am in a bad ways with money, why should I not be allowed to sell my extra kidney to get me out of a tough spot? Or if your family is poor and you die, your family can't even sell some organs (yours or theirs) to pay for the hospital bills and funeral costs.

Personally I think you should be able to do whatever you want with your body so long as your not physically harming someone else. And I think that being able to sell your own organs could help a lit of people on transplant lists. If I needed a kidney, I would rather have to pay extra for one than to not have one at all.

[Paraselene]

Is prostitution not legal in Nevada?

I think an individual should be able to legally prostitute his or her body if s/he wishes it, though again there is the safety measure. Most prostitutes do not care about keeping themselves safe, and thus they spread disease like wildfire. If the act of prostitution is to be made legal, perhaps there should be set up legal matters for the prostitutes to follow whereby they are informed and required to remain clean. Much like current employment safety guidelines.

[Deepthought]

So c172's thread on organ transplants got me thinking, should you be able to sell your body in every sense of the word? Right now it is illegal to sell your own body parts if you chose to, even though it is your body. If I am in a bad ways with money, why should I not be allowed to sell my extra kidney to get me out of a tough spot? Or if your family is poor and you die, your family can't even sell some organs (yours or theirs) to pay for the hospital bills and funeral costs.

Personally I think you should be able to do whatever you want with your body so long as your not physically harming someone else. And I think that being able to sell your own organs could help a lit of people on transplant lists. If I needed a kidney, I would rather have to pay extra for one than to not have one at all.

The issue is one of referred to in your last paragraph. The fact that rich people would benefit disproportionately. Furthermore the pressure on poor people to sell their organs to get out of debt or even fund the basics of life is a concern. The exploitation of the poor for their organs is something that is certainly commonplace in India.

[SteelCurtain]

There was a great article in Discover Magazine about the organ trade.

What I found is borne out by Madhav Goyal, a Johns Hopkins doctor and bioethicist who interviewed more than 300 Indian men compelled to sell their kidneys in the mid-1990s. The bulk of their fees—an average of $1,070—was used to settle the debts that had driven them to make the sale in the first place. The rest was gobbled up by basic needs like food and clothing. Using the cash to start a small business, such as a tea stall or an auto-rickshaw service, remained a pipe dream.

Free-trade proponents argue that donors would fare much better under a government-regulated program, which could provide incentives such as lifelong health insurance or college tuition for the donor’s children. Scheper-Hughes counters that the concept amounts to a “kidney tax” on the poor, exacting an unfair price for basic services and opportunities. She points to Iran, which has allowed kidney donations for cash since 1988, virtually eliminating the waiting list for the organ. A survey of 500 Iranian donors who received $1,200 and a year of medical insurance from the government found that their quality of life, as measured by factors like financial condition and psychological health, remained poor three to six months after the donation. “Nobody denies that most donors live in extreme poverty; many are drug addicts,” says WHO’s Noël. “There is candid recognition in Iran now that the scheme is working well only for the recipients.”

The problem is that the transaction will likely always be heavily slanted in favor of the recipient. Also, you would have to have strict oversight for people who are desperate, on both sides, not to be taken advantage of. There would have to be a set price, in my opinion, or poor people will be at a severe disadvantage. Also, the medical ethics of people having operations to sell their body parts voluntarily could be called into question.

I'm on the fence. On one hand, my body, etc., etc. On the other hand, if I can go to the bum on the street corner and offer him $500 for his kidney, who's protecting him?