Psst! Hey you ... give ya' $5,000 for your 'spare' kidney

As some dystopian authors predicted, poor people are being targeted with campaigns for them to sell their own body parts. The fact that these public forums are happening IN PUBLIC is a likely indicator that the problem must be way out of hand, already.

To: law_science_technology@lists.Stanford.EDU
Subject: Reminder: Michelle Oberman CLB talk on Tissue Donation TODAY
Date: Mon, 5 Dec 2005 10:30:19 -0800

Please note the room change.

The Stanford Center for Law and the Biosciences, part of the Stanford Program in 
Law, Science & Technology presents:

When the Truth is not Enough:
Tissue Donation, Altruism and the Market
Michelle Oberman
Professor of Law, Santa Clara University School of Law

December 5, 2005
5:00pm - 6:00pm
Stanford Law School, Room 280A

One of the most profitable new industries that arose in the late 20th and early 21st centuries derives from the numerous uses identified for human tissue. Until the spring of 2005, the federal government scarcely regulated this market, despite the routine governmental regulation of the organ transplantation industry. Ultimately, evidence of predatory practices by some actors in the tissue transplant business led the government to issue regulations governing the solicitation of human tissue from surviving family members. The foundation of these new federal regulations is the belief that mandating greater disclosure by those who solicit donations will insulate families from the risks of exploitation. This paper argues that these regulations, as drafted, offer too little protection to the families, and in addition, generate a threat to the entire organ and tissue transplant industry.

About the Speaker

Professor Michelle Oberman, J.D., M.P.H., is a professor of law at Santa Clara University School of Law, where she teaches Contracts and various courses in the health law area. In recent years, she has published a book and numerous articles on topics including clinical research with children, fiduciary obligations of health care providers to their patients, postpartum mental health issues and the law, statutory rape, substance abuse by pregnant women, and the regulation of the solicitation of tissue donations. In addition to her scholarly work, she lectures to a wide variety of audiences, and serves on committees at the local, state and national levels that work on issues pertaining to health policy.

Note - The next program in this series will feature Professor Tim Caulfield of the University of Alberta Faculty of Law, who will speak on Monday, January 23, same time, same place, on "The Popular Press and Genetics Policies:  The Nature and Impact of 'Genohype'"