Viet Nam’s National Assembly Standing Committee has discussed a draft bill on human organs donation, body parts transplants and tissue grafting. The bill proposed that commercialization of body organs donation would  strictly be prohibited.

There was a heated debate over the right of 16-18 years old to become organ donors. The bill allows 16-18 years old donors to donate organs to parents or siblings with their parent's permission only.

Some law makers argued: “Only donors who are over 18-years-old are allowed to decide to make donation,” .

Kidney is one of body parts to be sold

The draft law on donation of human organs and tissue grafting will be tabled at the Viet Nam’s National Assembly’s ninth session and passed at the end of the year.

According to the Ministry of Health, currently from 5,000 to 6,000 kidney patients are awaiting transplants. At five big hospitals in Ha Noi, about 1,500 patients waiting for liver transplants are in critical situation because no donors can be found. They are also at high risk or waiting for death.

Many patients have had transplant surgery abroad where the cost is up to ten times higher than that in Viet Nam. So quite a few patients have already been in critical conditions or simply waiting to die.

On the same day the National Assembly also discussed amendments to the Labor Law in regards to strike and strike solutions.