Future Retirement Success
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks

Future Retirement Success

Investing

Legalizing Organ Sales

by May 25, 2023
May 25, 2023

Jeffrey Miron

This article appeared on SubStack on May 25, 2023.

Organ sales are illegal in the United States and most other countries (Iran is a partial exception). The National Organ Transplantation Act of 1984 states, “it shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly acquire, receive, or otherwise transfer any human organ for valuable consideration for use in human transplantation if the transfer affects interstate commerce.” The penalty for breaking the law is a fine of $50,000 or up to five years in prison, or both.

In Libertarian Land, organ markets are legal. This makes everyone better off.

Consider first kidneys. People have two but can live normally with one. If the kidney market were legal, a person whose kidneys fail could purchase from a willing seller, and both could then live healthy lives.

The seller would risk that their remaining kidney might cease to function, but in a legal market, the supply of kidneys would be large and the price low, so such persons could likely buy a kidney from some future seller.

The situation is similar for liver transplants; recipients need only a partial transplant, and the donor’s remaining liver regenerates.

What about more extreme cases, where someone wants to sell a heart or other vital organ?

Such behavior might sound irrational, but imagine an aging parent in poor health (unrelated to their heart) who could earn a large sum by, in effect, committing suicide and selling their heart. The income might make it possible for that person’s children to attend better schools, or migrate to a safer country, or escape poverty. All at little cost to the quantity or quality of the seller’s life.

Why should policy interfere with such a trade? This act benefits the organ recipient as well, so it makes all participants better off. Most real world examples are less extreme, but the same principles apply.

One possible objection to legal organ markets is that some people might sell out of desperation, against their long term interest. A reasonable response is to require informed consent, rather than banning the organ market.

A second possible objection is that only the rich will benefit from legalized sales. That is unlikely, since the increased supply of organs due to legalization will drive organ prices down. Plus, private or public charities can subsidize organ purchases for low income patients, while keeping the trade legal to foster greater supply. Government funding for organ purchases might even pay for itself by improving recipient health and reducing public expenditure on health care (e.g., dialysis treatment for kidney failure).

Thus a legal market for organ sales would have the key feature of other markets: voluntary exchange that benefits both sides of the transactions.

0
FacebookTwitterGoogle +Pinterest
previous post
UKRI hit with £36m IR35 bill, taking non-compliance in public sector to £300m
next post
My Thoughts on Letters in Black and White

You may also like

The Fate of Millions of People With PTSD...

July 9, 2024

California Wildfires: Policy and Incentives

January 21, 2025

Krugman’s Cold Comfort on the Federal Debt

June 13, 2024

Trump’s Detention Surge Failed to Significantly Increase Removals

January 10, 2024

Justice Thomas’s Individualist Concurrence

June 30, 2023

James L. Buckley, R.I.P.

August 18, 2023

Bring Back Rescissions: How to Realize DOGE Savings

March 27, 2025

Getting It Half-Baked: The Real Cause of Cannabis...

June 6, 2025

The Government Can’t Target TikTok Because of the...

June 28, 2024

Six Reforms to Enhance Transparency and Fiscal Accountability...

January 31, 2024

    Get free access to all of the retirement secrets and income strategies from our experts! or Join The Exclusive Subscription Today And Get the Premium Articles Acess for Free

    By opting in you agree to receive emails from us and our affiliates. Your information is secure and your privacy is protected.

    Recent Posts

    • Trump warns of ‘serious consequences’ if Elon Musk funds Democrats

      June 7, 2025
    • Musk jokes about reconsidering stance on Big Beautiful Bill after Schiff’s praise

      June 7, 2025
    • Musk deletes explosive posts about Trump and Epstein files

      June 7, 2025
    • House witness flips script on Dem who ambushed him during hearing with unearthed tweet: ‘Iceberg is ahead’

      June 7, 2025
    • Call with China’s Xi, and Trump-Musk exchange fueled barbs during 20th week in office

      June 7, 2025
    • Trump’s conservative allies warn Congress faces critical ‘test’ with $9.4B spending cut proposal

      June 7, 2025

    Categories

    • Business (8,152)
    • Investing (2,019)
    • Politics (15,568)
    • Stocks (3,136)
    • About us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Disclaimer: futureretirementsuccess.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

    Copyright © 2025 futureretirementsuccess.com | All Rights Reserved