The Economic Way of Thinking 13th Edition by David Prychitko, Peter Boettke, Paul Heyne

Exercise 15

Federal law currently prohibits the sale of human organs for transplant purposes. At the present time, people are dying while waiting for suitable organs to become available. 2012 Nobel Prize winner in economics Alvin Roth has suggested designing a barter-like market for organs. But what about outright buying and selling of organs? It seems almost certain that more organs would become available if financial incentives were offered to prospective donors. Roth contends too many people find the idea repugnant. Would you be in favor of allowing this? What consequences would you predict?