Lawmakers push to legalize organ trade

"It is impossible to be clear on the source of organ donations. We would be unable to obtain complete information on whether organs from live donors were harvested in a humane fashion, whether social justice was observed and other questions."

Chen Chien-jen, director general of the Department of Health

Forty-four lawmakers yesterday pushed for national health insurance to cover kidney transplants performed abroad and the legalization of the international trade in transplant organs.

The proposed draft amendment to Article 43 of the National Health Insurance Law (全民健康保險法) would require the Bureau of National Health Insurance to subsidize kidney transplants in foreign hospitals if local donors cannot be found.

Kidney transplants performed abroad would be subsidized up to NT$210,000, the same as transplants performed in this country.

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator James Chen (陳健治), one of the proponents of the amendment, admitted yesterday at the Legislative Yuan that he had gone abroad to obtain a kidney transplant because of the shortage of donors at home.

"It costs the Bureau of National Health Insurance NT$690,000 a year to cover the costs of kidney dialysis for one patient, while only NT$210,000 is needed for a kidney transplant," Chen said.

He said legalizing international kidney procurement would lighten the bureau's financial burden.

There are currently 45,000 patients nationwide who require kidney dialysis.

Nearly 4,000 of these people are in need of a kidney transplant but only 100 transplant matches are made each year in this country, according to KMT Legislator Hsu Chung-hsiung (徐中雄).

Department of Health Director General Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁), however, was adamant that the agency could not condone the international traffic in organs.

"It is impossible to be clear on the source of organ donations. We would be unable to obtain complete information on whether organs from live donors were harvested in a humane fashion, whether social justice was observed and other questions," Chen Chien-jen said.

He cited records from the international human-rights organization Amnesty International that 90 percent of the kidneys sold in China were procured from executed prisoners without consent.

"This is a problem brought about by economic disparity between two neighboring nations. Do you think that if Taiwanese patients stopped buying kidneys in China they would just throw the organs out? Clearly, Chinese patients would be the recipients of these organs. Buying kidneys in China is unfair and inhumane," said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Shen Fu-hsiung (沈富雄).

Chen Chien-jen also told lawmakers that encouraging the organ trade would unfairly benefit wealthy people.

"It costs roughly NT$1 million for a kidney transplant. Even if the bureau subsidizes the cost, it is still a large amount of money," he said.

"While the Department of Health would subsidize wealthy patients, those who are less well off would have no choice but to remain on the waiting list for organs. This unfair practice goes against the spirit of the national health insurance," he said.

The health department has also warned that it is impossible to ensure the quality of healthcare provided abroad.

"Records from National Cheng Kung University indicated that while roughly 3 percent of Taiwan's transplant patients were diagnosed with cancer within three years, the figures were 8 percent in China and 13 percent in Indonesia," said DPP Legislator Chiu Yeong-jen (邱永仁), who is also a practicing physician.

"Kidneys obtained abroad would likely be from countries less developed than our own. The medical examinations given to donors and recipients [in those countries] might not necessarily be thorough enough," Chiu said.

The draft amendment will undergo inter-party negotiations by mem-bers of the Sanitation, Environment, and Social Welfare committee before being put on the legislative agenda.