Activity related to the organ trade around the world
United States- Large number of African-Americans on dialysis and the small
number of African Amerian transplant patients. (Southeast Organ Procurement
Foundation 1978). In spite of laws (1984) threatening up to 5 years in prison
for sale and purchase of organs, families of deceased people were paid one
million dollars for the donation of the deceased's body parts, offered free
funerals, reduced telephone rates, etc. (T.G. Peters, "Life or Death, The
issue of payment in cadaveric organ donation," in the Journal of the American
Medical Association, March 1991, 265(10), pp1302-1305. Also, the Pittsburgh
Transplant Institute made an agreement with the Brazilian Transplant Association
that in exchange for providing financial, technological, and scientific support
to the liver transplant Institute of Sao Paulo, in exchange for providing
human livers to the United State. (Folha de Sao Paulo, 1 de dezembro de 1991,
cadernos 4, p1).
California
- Commerce in Tissues
April 16-20, 2000
The Body Brokers : A special Investigative Report.
- Organ Sales
In September of 1999 at University of California at Irvine, it was reported
that unauthorized dissection classes took place in Willed Body Program facilities.
The classes were offered by a company called Replica Notes that charged $300.00
per student. University officials said that they did not authorize the class,
did not allow use of the donated cadaver and can find no record that the school
received any proceeds from the course. Further investigation revealed that
the director, Christopher Brown, sold six spines to an Arizona research program
and received a $5,000 check made out to University Medical Services, an organization
that UC Irvine officals state they do not recognize.
