Living organ donors face financial barriers: a national reimbursement policy is needed.

摘要

Kidney transplantation from living donors is an established treatment for end-stage renal disease: it increases life expectancy, improves quality of life and is less costly than dialysis. In Canada, the growth of solid-organ transplantation over the past decade has primarily been attributable to increases in living organ donation, for which rates have doubled within the past decade.1 Nevertheless, waiting lists continue to grow, and further strategies to increase organ donations from living donors continue to be explored.2 Eliminating barriers to donation is one way to increase donors. Currently in this country, there are economic disincentives to donors that, in addition to being unfair, may limit rates of organ donation and need to be addressed with a national policy.