Laws For Organ Transplant In India

To avoid illegal transplant, Indian government in 1994 listed certain laws that made the sale of organ a crime, so no exchange of money was allowed between the recipient and donor. In 1994, government passed an act to rationalize organ transplants and donation, where the main aims were to regulate removal, transplantation and storage were for the therapeutic purpose. Another aim was accepting of the brain death that makes it quite possible for the deceased patients to be potential donors. After such deal, the brain death concept was legalized and accepted in India for the very first time.

Certain changes which were made in the Bill 2009:

·         If there tends to be any of the money involvement with the transplant, then the recipient and the donor would be penalized with a case.

·         A prior permission is required from State Authorization Committee, if the donor of the organ isn’t a close relative.

·         An informed consent has to be given and agreed upon by the patient or the relatives, about the organ donation possibility.

·         The bill has given the permission where if the organ recipient and donor don’t medically match, then it should be swapped with another person.

·         The penalty also has increased as per the bill amendment is concerned, for the illegal removal of the organ or paying for or receiving an organ as such.

In the bill 2013, state department of health, came up with certain composite guidelines following the dealing of countering illegal transplant and deceiving patients. Also that there would now be Verification Committee along with Authorization Committee.

The donor of the organ has to go through Blood testing, Serology, Cross-match, and Human Leukocyte Antigens before the transplantation of organ, and after testing of all these is secured, they can then move forward with the donation of the organ.