Draft bill aims to boost organ donation
A draft bill debated by ministers during Wednesday?s cabinet meeting aims to boost the number of organs available for transplants by allowing the donation of organs without the consent of a potential donor?s relatives.
If the bill is approved, authorities will have the right to remove the organs of a dead person unless the individual had declared their opposition to having their organs donated to the National Transplant Organization (EOM).
The bill introduces the term ?presumed consent.?
The draft bill also proposes an amendment to legislation governing live organ donations from relative to relative. If the reform is passed, live organs will be able to be donated from relatives up to four degrees removed, as compared to the current two degrees removed. Live organ donations will also be permitted between people who cohabit.
A study by the European Commission?s statistics agency Eurostat shows that 45 percent of Greeks oppose becoming organ donors as they distrust the state healthcare system. The figure is the highest in the European Union, with just 0.9 percent of Greeks holding an donor card.
