Offering more without offering compensation: non-compensating benefits for living kidney donors

• Published in: Medicine, health care, and philosophy Vol. 24; no. 4; pp. 711 - 719
• Main Authors: Fruh, Kyle, Duman, Ege K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.12.2021; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Bioethics; Blood & organ donations; Education; Ethics; Medical Law; Philosophy; Philosophy of Biology; Philosophy of Medicine; Scientific Contribution; Theory of Medicine/Bioethics; Non-compensation; Kidneys; Incentives; Compensation; Donation; Benefits; Organ; Transplant
• ISSN: 1386-7423; 1572-8633
• DOI: 10.1007/s11019-021-10034-3

While different positions on the permissibility of organ markets enjoy support, there is widespread agreement that some benefits to living organ donors are acceptable and do not raise the same moral concerns associated with organ markets, such as exploitation and commodification. We argue on the basis of two distinctions that some benefit packages offered to donors can defensibly surpass conventional reimbursement while stopping short of controversial cash payouts. The first distinction is between benefits that  defray  the costs of donating an organ and benefits that incentivize donation by offering something in excess of defraying. The second distinction is between benefits that  compensate  donors and benefits that are  non-compensating. We argue that non-compensating benefits are innocent of moral concerns typically associated with controversial cash payouts, and thus may be a morally promising avenue for increasing rates of kidney donation to address the tragic results of undersupply.