Organ Donation And Michael Gill's Arguments

Organ donation is when a person grants doctors or researchers the permission to legally remove their organs for research or transplant into another person. People give consent when they are alive, or their nearest kin chooses this option for them after their death. Organ donors are usually dead at the time of the surgical removal. Their organs are checked to see if it is in good condition before proceeding. Afterwards, their organs are immediately given to patients in need. The family of the donors are not charges any fees for the process. Different countries have different laws regarding organ donation. The consent process for organ donation is difficult to execute because the subject is not able to give consent at the moment due to death
This system argues that we should assume people prefer to donate their organs if they did not leave a clear indication that they do not. Michael Gill states that,” presumed consent with a provision for family veto is still a superior option, at least at the present time, when a significant portion of the American public lacks full information about organ donation and transplantation” (Gill, p.38). Gill argues due to lack of information and knowledge about organ donation, most people do not leave a clear consent. With presumed consent, organ donation will increase because a high number of people do not have a preference of what happens to their organs. Gill also states, “I believe proponents of presumed consent are right in holding that organ procurement policy ought to be based on the fewer mistakes claim” (Gill, p.43). Interestingly, Gill claims that there is no doubt that the current system and a system of presumed consent will make mistakes regarding respecting individual’s autonomy, and a system of presumed consent will have a fewer mistakes than the current system. People who oppose presumed consent believe that mistaken removals are morally worse than non-mistaken removals. In contrast, Gill argues that both are morally equivalent since they are both invading individual's autonomy. This is important because if presumed consent leads to fewer mistakes than my default it is the better options for because as it respects more the autonomy of individuals. Gill’s autonomy based argument is stating that a system of presumed consent would do a better job that the current system when it comes to respecting individuals wished regarding how they want their bodies to be treated after they