Families can keep right to veto organ donations: govt
Health minister Lo Chung-mau on Wednesday said authorities have no plans to make registrations in the city's organ donation scheme legally binding. DAB legislator Elizabeth Quat asked whether the government could scrap the current system whereby relatives of would-be donors must give permission before the deceased person's organs can be used. In a written reply to Quat, Lo said suggestions like making registrations part of a person's will, an opt-out donor system, or “automatic organ donation after death” are all very different from the current mechanism in Hong Kong. He said it's not an appropriate time to bring in legislation to change the system and education should be stepped up instead. "Being a controversial topic, careful consideration is required before imposing any mandatory measures on organ donation through legislation as doing so may be counterproductive as it may even discourage those who would like to express their wish clearly to take action," he said. Lo also urged people not to withdraw from the online donation register based on false information or misunderstandings. Organ donation has become a controversial issue since the SAR authorities said they are considering an organ sharing programme with the mainland.  Arrests were recently made after the government complained of an abnormal surge in applications for  withdrawals from the donation register.