Make it a binding register

Stuff reports:

More than half of all New Zealand drivers have ticked “donor” on their driver licences, official figures show.

The NZ Transport Agency figures come on the back of 100 submissions on a Ministry of Health-led review aimed at improving organ donation rates, and looking at what role the licence register should play.

Barring the 75-plus age group, willing donors were in the majority for every age group, when compared with those who indicated no, or left the space blank.

Released under the Official Information Act, the figures break down the number of donors out of the country’s There are 3.5 million licensed drivers, of whom 1.9m have indicated “donor” on their licences.

Last year, there were 61 dead organ donors. 

Making the driver licence system an effective register is one of the proposals the ministry has suggested in the review. It says this could be done through better information, and more opportunities to update donor preferences.

It should be a register of donor decisions, not preferences.

The current system is basically a cruel hoax. You tick the box thinking it means that if you end up in a situation where you can donate, it will happen. But in fact ticking the box is meaningless. The hospitals often don’t even check the database. They ignore what you have indicated, and force your family into deciding.