The Department of Health has admitted that there is rampant illegal Traffic in human organs and pledged to start drafting regulatory rules for the growing market. Much of the trade in human organs, especially kidneys, takes place on the black market, according to Health Undersecretary Jade del Mundo. Del Mundo cited a recent University of the Philippines study, which found that in one slum area in Manila, there were 3,000 men and women who had sold one of their kidneys for P70,000 to P120,000 ($1,440 to $2,469).
The government needs to initiate a series
of consultations with private and public health sector leaders on how to
regulate organ donation in the “ace of rampant, under-the-table traffic in
human organs,’ del Mundo said. He acknowledged that organ donation is a big
business in the Philippines, especially among the poor. At present there are no
specific rules on organ donation to foreigners, he added.
A report in a Japanese newspaper recently
said that if the system of organ donation were regulated, the Philippines could
see a rush of foreign patients, including from Japan, where 10,000 people are
awaiting kidney transplants Some doctors said poverty has forced many of the
poor to treat their organs as commodities. Republic Act 9208 (Antitrafficking
of Persons Act of 2003) also penalizes the recruitment, hiring, transport or
abduction of persons for the purpose of removal or sale of organs.
The Mail RSS Feed.
