Australian transplant payment criticised

that does not but will accept a Federal and state governments in Aus- : under a "special circumstance" provision. monetary "donation" from recipients or tralia have been accused of circumventing : The rationale for charging was that it v their families, in the belief that charging would diminish the number and spirit of the law dealing with donated human : was equitable, and that it would recomdonations. lie". with a : pense donors and their families, encourtissue, "statutory In the MFA, Kirby wrote that classifying : Michael and : reduce the short of Justice Kirby, president age donation, supply corneas as prostheses and not as living former chairman of the Australian : corneas, and reflect international pracLaw Reform Commission, has accused tice. Opponents argued that the act of tissue is a "statutory lie", that the charge economic rationalists of betraying the : donating would be commercialised, that is not being recouped in part by the donors or their families, and that charges intentions of people who have donated : supply would be reduced by destruction corneas for transplant, by charging recipi: of the altruistic spirit of donation, and "would be completely prohibitive for all but a wealthy few". Dr George Thomson, ents for them (Med Australia 1995; 163: : that paid donors could be liable to certain chairman of the committee of transplant: legal consequences-eg, those related to 142-43). ing ophthalmologists of the Royal AusOther donated living tissue, such as : the quality of the tissue. Kirby reminded tralian College of Ophthalmologists, said kidneys, hearts, and blood, do not cost : readers that charging in some parts of that charging for corneas "is a breach of the recipients anything, under provisions : Asia had led to trading in body parts and faith with those people who have willingly of the Human Tissue Acts in effect in : to the transmission of serious disease. donated living tissue so that others can state and : the described reason for every territory. Justice Kirby given see". He added that there is an obvious maintained that the Law Reform Comcharging-to "recover costs and allow eye anomaly in the statutory denial that mission’s recommendations against : banks to recover benefits payable by corneas are not living tissue, in that eye charging for living tissue and the Acts : health funds"-as an excuse. Charges are banks will distribute only corneas that have been circumvented by the federal : described as eye bank "processing fees" been have proved to contain more than government classification of corneas as: and range from A$425 in Queensland, 70% living endothelial cells. RACO has prostheses, rather than as living tissue,. to$754 in New South Wales. South continued its protest against the charge with State and Federal governments, New Polish transplant law passed which it accuses of avoiding the responsiPoland last week passed a law on organ transplantation based on the bility to adequately fund eye banks. of the donor. consent from deceased presumption Under the new law, unless individuals specifically state that they do not want Peter Harrigan their organs, cells, or tissue to be used for transplantation, doctors may remove such material without the consent of the next of kin. In addition, a dead body is presumed to have no owner; the only right the family has is to its burial. People who do not wish their remains to used for transplantation must UNDP Palestinian make an entry to that effect in their personal identification papers, make a The United Nations written statement to the central registry office, or make an oral statement in Development of to the PalestinAssistance front of at least two witnesses. Programme ian People has started to generate a PalesThe law, passed by an overwhelming majority (364 in favour, three against, tinian "human development profile", and nine abstentions), also makes it a criminal offence to treat organs for which will be finalised by June, 1996. transplantation as "commodities". Anyone attempting to make a living from Current developments in the Palestin: the sale of organs is liable to up to 10 years’ imprisonment. Advertising ian territories are mainly reactions to transplant services carries a penalty of up to 5000 new zloty (.E1400). emergencies that affect health, welfare, social needs, as well as the economy. Vera Rich : One purpose of the new initiative is to provide a continuing analysis of human child abuse increases in Australia development that can highlight areas for policy intervention. UNDP personnel in in The Australian Institute of Health and and a de-facto 5%. The 6%, parent charge of sustainable development are rate of abuse involving Aboriginal chilWelfare has released a report showing that seeking the participation of nondren (15-2 per 1000) was greater than in 1993-94 state and territory welfare governmental organisations, universities, that for the wider population (5-7 per departments received a total of 74 436 independent research centres, women’s 1000). organisations, bodies within the Palestinreports of child abuse and neglect. This ian territories as well as other cognisant was a 26% increase over the previous Reports of abuse and neglect from the UN agencies. subject child and from social workers had year. The increase in reporting is attributed in part to widely publicised notorithe highest rates of substantiation (58%), : One goal is to identify and address basic and those from anonymous persons and ous cases of child abuse and, in the case human development indicators, including: * expectancy of health and longevity at of Victoria, which had a 53% increase, friends and neighbours the lowest (24 and In relation to emo30%, respectively). birth; partly by mandatory reporting. &bul et; ability to acquire knowledge; Of the cases that have been finalised, tional abuse, 25% of cases were attributed &bul et; access to adequate economic resources; to the parent’s emotional state, and a fur44% were substantiated. Children of both &bul et; gender equality; sexes were represented almost equally in ther 25% to emotional harm as a conse• healthy environment; and substantiated cases of physical abuse, quence of the parent’s alcohol or drug emotional abuse, and neglect, while girls use. In 43% of substantiated sexual quality of life, including political and were the victims in 74% of sexual-abuse cultural freedom and regional integration. abuse, the primary abuse was sexual UNDP has allocated some modest cases. Children aged 13 and 14 representfondling. 42% of neglect cases resulted : ed the largest numbers in substantiated from inadequate supervision. start-up funds to the initiative. cases of child abuse and neglect. A natural parent was believed responsible in 72% of substantiated cases, a step-parent in Rachelle HB Fischman Stephen Cordner

Australian transplant payment criticised

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