Ethics and ethical issues related to Medicare funded Organ Transplant
Organ transplants are experiencing a lot of growth. The ethical issue – Criteria about the eligibility of recipients
Problem of Anti rejection drug or “immunosuppressant” being available only for a limited amount of time through
Medicare funding.
The primary ethical dilemmas in organ transplant - shortage of available organs.
Role of Medicare with respect to ethical issues arising from the organ transplants.
Issues related to the funding of the organ transplants and availability of the drugs to the wider section of American people.
Non-coverage of anti-rejection drug or immunosuppressant drugs by Medicare beyond 36 Months
Prevention of rejection and infection of the transplanted organ
The financing of the Medicare program has received much attention by Congress because of its rapidly rising costs and constant drain on the nation’s economy.” (Pozgar,
2007).
At the end of 2005 there were 163,631 people in the U.S. living with a functioning transplanted organ. This number reflects an increase of 2.1 percent over the prior year and a
60 percent increase since 1997.” (Solutions for Medicare
Advantage Transplant Challenges).
There are various organ transplant specialized Centers of
Excellence in the country that have come up in the last few years such as Multi Plan, Transplant Solutions COE facilities which offer contracted savings on a variety of organ and stem cell transplant procedures using standardized rate and fixed charges throughout the hospital stay.
Not having enough funds for organ transplants through Medicare funding.
Need to increase the access to the organ transplant for the general masses of the people. Need for an organ distribution process free of biases, race, sex, income level etc.
Restriction on people from having organ transplants that have had wrong lifestyle habits like smoking and alcohol use and thus damaged their organs.
Improper screening for candidates
No proper eligibility criteria – People with poor lifestyle could have prevented their illness. Medicare should consider not covering criminals. Government to tax the wealthier population.
Simplification of the price structure and having the efficient system for the organ transplant.
Organizations like OptumHealth, MultiPlan can help reduce the cost and increase effectiveness of the Medicare program.
People with children should be given priority
There is also a need for educating people about considering for giving consent for their deceased family member's organs.
Need for research and studies
To increase taxes for the wealthy and large business. This will help generate the needed money for Medicare expenses.
To implement organ transplant specialized Centres of
Excellence to minimize cost and increase effectiveness of the Medicare program.
To reduce volatility of the payment and make it a stable budget item and also cut down on unnecessary cost
To avoid inappropriate transplants and reduce the retransplant rate.
To provide proper coverage in terms of health
