On giving preference to prior volunteers when allocating organs for transplantation.

In this issue of the journal Rupert Jarvis argues for a simple idea -a 'modest proposal' -that he believes will radically increase the supply of organs for transplantation (1). Given the existing shortage of donor organs for transplantation it would be entirely just, he reasons, for our society to give priority for receipt of organs for transplantation to those patients who had previously volunteered to donate their own organs. Once such a scheme was promulgated, the incentive to volunteer as an organ donor would, he plausibly argues, become very great indeed, and thus the supply of organs would become much larger than at present.