<story><title>Organ donation in England has moved to an opt-out system</title><url>https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/uk-laws/organ-donation-law-in-england</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>casefields</author><text>I refuse to be a donor. If they want me then make a real donation, say some money towards funeral expenses. I would sign up in a heartbeat.&lt;p&gt;And I&amp;#x27;ve been plenty more altruistic when it comes to tissue donations. About 10 years ago I came up as a match to a stranger through the Be The Match Foundation. I went through the whole process and gave that lady bone marrow. So I&amp;#x27;m not just a grubby meanie out for a buck. Everyone else in the chain is getting paid, there&amp;#x27;s no reason the donor should be left empty handed.</text></item><item><author>mft_</author><text>While I totally support the opt-out approach (or indeed, no option to opt out) I wonder if we need a new term - as it doesn’t seem like a ‘donation’. ‘Donation’ implies gift, and also an element of conscious choice, both of which mightn’t apply any more.</text></item><item><author>Barrin92</author><text>This is a great decision. There&amp;#x27;s been a lot more interest in behavioural economics over the recent years and I remember reading one of Dan Ariety&amp;#x27;s books about this.&lt;p&gt;The key thing that increases the rate of organ donations dramatically (from 30% to almost unviversal between opt-in and opt-out) is that there&amp;#x27;s a very significant cost to choice. The more choices people have to make, even if they arrive at desired outcomes, hugely diminishes the chance that they do.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>ebg13</author><text>&amp;gt; &lt;i&gt;I refuse to be a donor. If they want me then make a real donation, say some money towards funeral expenses.&lt;/i&gt;&lt;p&gt;You refuse to save lives at literally no cost to yourself or anyone you know unless someone pays your family off?&lt;p&gt;&amp;gt; &lt;i&gt;there&amp;#x27;s no reason the donor should be left empty handed&lt;/i&gt;&lt;p&gt;The donor is dead! Hands don&amp;#x27;t get any emptier!&lt;p&gt;&amp;gt; &lt;i&gt;So I&amp;#x27;m not just a grubby meanie out for a buck.&lt;/i&gt;&lt;p&gt;Ok, let&amp;#x27;s see...&lt;p&gt;Cost to you? 0.&lt;p&gt;Cost to your family? 0.&lt;p&gt;Benefit to others? You could save several lives.&lt;p&gt;Will only do it for? Money.&lt;p&gt;Yup, no conflict there.</text></comment>
<story><title>Organ donation in England has moved to an opt-out system</title><url>https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/uk-laws/organ-donation-law-in-england</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>casefields</author><text>I refuse to be a donor. If they want me then make a real donation, say some money towards funeral expenses. I would sign up in a heartbeat.&lt;p&gt;And I&amp;#x27;ve been plenty more altruistic when it comes to tissue donations. About 10 years ago I came up as a match to a stranger through the Be The Match Foundation. I went through the whole process and gave that lady bone marrow. So I&amp;#x27;m not just a grubby meanie out for a buck. Everyone else in the chain is getting paid, there&amp;#x27;s no reason the donor should be left empty handed.</text></item><item><author>mft_</author><text>While I totally support the opt-out approach (or indeed, no option to opt out) I wonder if we need a new term - as it doesn’t seem like a ‘donation’. ‘Donation’ implies gift, and also an element of conscious choice, both of which mightn’t apply any more.</text></item><item><author>Barrin92</author><text>This is a great decision. There&amp;#x27;s been a lot more interest in behavioural economics over the recent years and I remember reading one of Dan Ariety&amp;#x27;s books about this.&lt;p&gt;The key thing that increases the rate of organ donations dramatically (from 30% to almost unviversal between opt-in and opt-out) is that there&amp;#x27;s a very significant cost to choice. The more choices people have to make, even if they arrive at desired outcomes, hugely diminishes the chance that they do.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>theonemind</author><text>Hmm. What do you think about systems where you personally can&amp;#x27;t get those sort of organs (for yourself, from someone else) unless you opt into donation yourself? Would you find that adequate compensation, or would the possibility of not getting organs you need sway your decision?</text></comment>