LEGISLATION REGARDING SOFT opt-out organ donation is to be debated before the Dáil today. 

Under the Human Tissue (Transplantation, Post-Mortem, Anatomical Examination, and Public Display) Bill, consent will be deemed unless a person has, while alive, registered his or her wish to not become an organ donor after death.

There will still be discussion with designated family members before organs are removed for transplant.

“I am proud to be introducing this landmark piece of legislation to the Dáil,” Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said ahead of the debate. 

“The Bill will, for the first time, provide a national legislative framework to support donation and transplant services in Ireland. This will help increase the donor pool, but it is important to say that families will continue to be consulted ahead of donation and those individuals who object, for whatever reason, will be able to opt-out.”

“Transplantation is currently the only available treatment for end-stage heart, lung and liver failure. It is also the most cost-effective treatment for end-stage kidney disease, and it brings enormous clinical and social benefits to patients who would otherwise remain on dialysis,” the Minister added. 

Other than organ donation and transplantation, the Bill also covers areas such as post-mortems. 

The new law will implement the relevant recommendations of the Madden Report on post-mortem practices and procedures, as well as regulations around the retention, storage, use and disposal of organs and tissue from deceased persons following a hospital post-mortem.

There have been calls from campaigners for the legislation to progress quickly, after it emerged that the remains of 18 babies were sent abroad for incineration without the knowledge of their parents between 25 March and 2 April 2020. 

In November, the management at Cork University Maternity Hospital (CUMH) accepted findings that families were badly let down by the decision to incinerate their deceased babies’ organs without the consent of their parents. 

Clinical regulations introduced under the Bill will apply to all post-mortem practice and procedures in hospital settings. Up to now only guidelines have been in place.

“The Bill recognises the need to introduce safeguards to protect the integrity of the human body before and after death,” Donnelly said.

“It will make consent for non-coronial post-mortems compulsory and will improve communication and information-sharing with families for all post-mortems, including those conducted under the direction of the coroner,” he said. 

Public display 

The Bill will repeal the Anatomy Act 1832, and put in place arrangements for the donation of bodies to anatomy schools and provisions for the setting of standards to be met in the practice of anatomy.

The new legislation also deals with the public display of dead bodies, something which is currently not legislated for in Ireland.

The State currently has no powers to investigate the decision of putting bodies on public display, or to intervene if required.

Under the Bill, a license will be required for the public display of bodies after death. This will not impact funeral arrangements when someone is in repose, but is aimed at events such as the Real Bodies exhibition, which displays human remains to the public. 

The provisions in the legislation outline the consent arrangements required for the donation of a body or body parts for public display and ensure the provenance of the specimens used.

With reporting by Christina Finn