Organ donation opt out plans in England – not nearly as clear cut as it might seem
by Peter Saunders, CMF:
All adults in England will be presumed to be organ donors unless they have explicitly opted out, the government has announced.
The new plans follow a public consultation launched last December. Wales has had a similar opt-out system since 2015 and Scotland also plans to introduce one.
New legislation which will be introduced in parliament this autumn is intended to come into effect in spring 2020 giving people a 12-month transition period to make decisions about organ donation preferences.
According to the BBC, ‘Max’s Law’ is named after Max Johnson, from Cheshire, who was saved by a heart transplant.
His search for a suitable heart was followed in a series of front-page stories in the Daily Mirror, as the newspaper campaigned for the change in the law.
Last year, Prime Minister Theresa May wrote to the ten-year-old, saying she chose the name after she heard his ‘inspirational story’.
Groups excluded from ‘presumed consent’ will include under 18s, people lacking the mental capacity to understand the changes, and people who have not lived in England for at least twelve months before their death.
People who do not wish to donate their organs will be able to record their decision on the NHS Organ Donor Register, by calling a helpline, visiting the NHS Blood and Transplant website or on a new NHS app.
If people do not opt out they will be considered to be a potential organ donor but donation will not proceed if the family ‘objects strongly’.
A clear-cut case?
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