BMJ 2007;334:973 (12 May), doi:10.1136/bmj.39206.419907.DB
News
German ethics council demands opt-out system for transplants
Annette Tuffs
Heidelberg
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
An influential German advisory body is proposing a change in the law on organ donation so that it is assumed that everyone in the country has agreed to be a donor after death unless they have specifically opted out by registering their objection to donation.
The proposal from the German National Ethics Council has had a mixed reception, with opposition coming from politicians and a doctors' organisation.
The council's paper, published in April, was designed as an urgent response to the plight of the 12 000 German patients waiting for organs by asking for a change in legislation. Every year about 1000 patients die while awaiting a transplant.
The council, which is independent, issues regular statements and opinion papers on important ethical topics (www.ethikrat.org). It has up to 25 members who represent scientific, medical, theological, philosophical, social, legal, ecological, and economic interests.
The current German law on transplants,
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