Does India's organ transplant system favour foreigners and the rich?

This week, the government of Kerala announced its intention to implement mandatory requirement for brain death reporting in intensive care units of the state, de-linking it from organ donation. This was done in response to concerns raised by civil society organisations about the perception of selective brain-death declarations in order to facilitate removal and transplantation of organ to benefit a more affluent section of society who are treated in private hospitals.

This is not a new concern. Last month, an enquiry instituted by the Tamil Nadu government found that organs from deceased donors were being allocated preferentially to foreign nationals, especially those from the Middle East, Central Asian republics and Africa.

Especially concerning is the data on lungs and hearts: 25-33% of such organs are routinely given to foreign nationals. The reasons put forward are exhaustion of Indians on the wait list, medical non-fitness of listed Indian recipients, or refusal because a certain surgeon was not available. A desktop search quickly brings to notice other such instances, in fact transplanting a foreign national was even reported as some sort of achievement. Read Complete Article

Business Standard