German health minister presents draft law on opt-out organ donation

Germany should switch to an opt-out system for organ donation to boost the number of organs available to those in need of transplants, according to a draft law presented by a group of parliamentarians in the German Bundestag on Monday.

Under the draft law, every German citizen would be assumed to be willing to donate an organ. At the same time, each individual could also expressly object to being a donor during his or her lifetime.

"The opt-out solution is not an obligation to donate organs," said German Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU), who led the group of German Bundestag politicians. The opt-out solution was, however, meant to be an obligation to deal with the issue of donating organs.

Spahn argued that Germany's current opt-in solution, according to which potential organ donors have to actively opt for organ donation, had been insufficient. Although the willingness to donate in Germany was over 80 percent, the number of those who possess an organ donor card was far lower.

German Social Democrat parliamentary group leader Karl Lauterbach, who supported Spahn's proposal, stressed that "around 2,000 people die every year on the waiting list" for organs in Germany.

Lauterbach said that the opt-out solution was unbureaucratic, ethically unobjectionable, efficient and secure. "It is still perfectly okay not to donate," the SPD politician said. Those who do not want to donate, however, would need to explain this in the future.

The cross-party parliamentary group, led by Spahn, was also supported by CSU health politician Georg Nuesslein and Petra Sitte from the Left (Die Linke) party.

"No one will be forced to do anything," said Nuesslein, while Sitte spoke of an "act of solidarity" with one's fellow human beings.

Under the draft law, every German citizen over the age of 18 would in principle decide whether they are prepared to donate organs in the event of brain death.

According to Health Minister Spahn, young people above the age of 16 should also have the opportunity to actively register as organ donors.

Before Germans make any decision on becoming organ donors, they should be comprehensively informed and be able to revise their decision at any time, according to the draft law.

If a German citizen did not object or make a decision, they would be registered as an organ donor. If there was no objection, relatives should also be asked after the death of a possible donor whether the person had agreed to the removal of an organ, according to the German politicians.

The Bundestag is planning to decide on the reform of the German organ donor law independently of parliamentary faction.

The German Foundation for Patient Protection, however, has warned against abandoning the principle of voluntariness.

"Every organ donation is a voluntary decision," said Eugen Brysch, the foundation's head, adding that "silence does not mean consent." It is of particular ethical value to give another person his organ but "this gift cannot be forced with a crowbar."

Christian Lindner, head of the Free Democratic Party (FDP), also opposed the opt-out solution and criticized it as "breaching people's right to free self-determination."

"The right thing would be to ensure that more people decide to donate organs of their own free will," said Lindner.

Germany has been experiencing a shortage of donor organs, with 9,400 patients recently on the waiting lists for organ transplantation. Last year, however, the number of organ donors increased again for the first time since 2010.