Photo courtesy of Alexius Horatius
BOSTON (AP) – A proposal to let prisoners in Massachusetts donate organs and bone marrow to shave time off their sentence is raising profound ethical and legal questions about putting undue pressure on people behind bars who are desperate for freedom.
The bill may run afoul of federal law, which bars the sale of human organs or acquiring one for “valuable consideration” and faces a steep climb in the Massachusetts State House.
Critics are calling the idea coercive even as one of the bill’s sponsors says it is a response to the over-incarceration of Black and Hispanic people and the need for matching donors.
State Representative Judith Garcia (D) also said Black and Hispanic communities are at higher risk for health conditions that might require organ donation.
State Representative Carlos Gonzalez (D), another co-sponsor of the bill, defended the proposal, calling it a voluntary program. He also said he’s open to establishing a policy that would allow inmates to donate organs and bone marrow without the lure of a reduced sentence. There is currently no law against prisoner organ donation in Massachusetts, he said.
“It’s not quid pro quo. We are open to setting policy without incentives,” Gonzalez said, adding that it is “crucial to respect prisoners’ human dignity and agency by respecting their choice to donate bone marrow or an organ.”
By Steve LeBlanc, Associated Press
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