A U.S. nephrologist and a British bioethicist have suggested in the American Journal of Kidney Diseases that a "conscription" system of organ donation -- where viable organs are taken from the recently deceased without permission of the next-of-kin -- would alleviate the growing organ shortage and prevent needless deaths.

Dr. Aaron Spital of Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, NY, and Charles A. Erin of the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom argue that mandatory cadaveric organ donation is "preferable" because it would save more lives, avoid the need of approaching bereaved families, and unlike proposals to provide compensation for donation, would risk no "exploitation of the poor for the benefit of the rich."

"Under this plan, all usable organs would be removed from recently deceased people and made available for transplantation; consent would be neither required nor requested and, with the possible exception of people with religious objections, opting-out would not be possible," the authors suggest in the opinion article.

Several leaders of organ donational organizations quickly observed that such a proposal had absolutely no chance of moving forward in the United States.

Other sources: American Journal of Kidney Diseases