(LifeSiteNews) — In a recent New York Times op-ed, three transplant center-affiliated doctors proposed broadening the legal definition of death in order to obtain more organs for transplantation. Interestingly, at the end of their article, they admitted that we have done this before:
In 1968, a committee of doctors and ethicists at Harvard came up with a definition of brain death – the same basic definition most states use today. In its initial report the committee noted that “there is great need for the tissues and organs of the hopelessly comatose in order to restore health to those who are still salvageable.” This frank assessment was edited out of the final report because of a reviewer’s objection. But it is one that should guide death and organ policy today.
Shortly after Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed the first heart transplant, 13 men at Harvard Medical School proposed the idea of brain death in a landmark paper, “A Definition of Irreversible Coma.” CONTINUE