Last modified: 11 May 2000
SECTION VII
ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES
"Some people believe that families who donate organs should receive
some sort of financial incentive such as assistance in paying
funeral expenses, a cash award to the donor's estate, or a cash
award to a charity of the family's choice. Would financial
incentives like these make you more likely or less likely to donate
your own organs, or would it have no effect?"
AND
Would financial incentives like these make you more likely or less
likely to donate a family member's organs, or would it have no
effect?"
TABLE 32
Would Financial Incentives Make Respondents
More or Less Likely to Donate Organs
Own Organs Family Members' Organs
More Less No More Less No
Likely Likely Effect Likely Likely Effect
Total (n=6,127) 12% 5% 81% 12% 5% 78
Gender
Male (n=2,589) 15% 5% 78% 15% 4% 77
Female (n=3,538) 9 5 83 10 6 79
Age
18-24 (n=695) 30% 7% 61% 27% 9% 61
25-34 (n=1,442) 16 5 76 16 5 74
35-44 (n=1,465) 10 4 85 10 4 84
45-54 (n=889) 10 4 84 10 3 83
55+ (n=1,566) 4 4 87 6 5 81
Education
High school or less (n=2,377) 12% 5% 80% 12% 5% 76
Some college (n=1,763) 14 4 81 14 4 79
College graduate (n=1,922) 10 5 84 10 5 82
Race/Ethnicity
White (n=4,816) 11% 4% 83% 11% 5% 80
Black (n=722) 13 9 70 21 8 62
Hispanic (n=741) 20 7 67 17 8 66
Support for Organ Donation
Support (n=5,247) 12% 4% 82% 12% 5% 80
Oppose (n=366) 6 15 71 14 9 66
Alternative Approaches 43
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- Financial incentives would impact less than 20% of respondents'
likelihood to donate their/ family member's organs. Twelve percent
(12%) would be more likely to donate, while 5% would be less likely.
- Younger respondents and those who are nonwhite appear more
amenable to financial incentives.
- Those who oppose donation are even less likely to donate their own
organs if financial incentives were offered to donors' families.
44 Alternative Approaches
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"Do you approve of transplanting animal organs from pigs or
baboons, for example, into humans when suitable human organs are
not available for transplant?"
TABLE 33
Percentage Approving of Transplanting Animal Organs
When Human Organs Unavailable
Percent
Total (n=6,127) 50%
Gender
Male (n=2,589) 56%
Female (n=3,538) 44
Age
18-24 (n=695) 50%
25-34 (n=1,442) 50
35-44 (n=1,465) 55
45-54 (n=889) 51
55+ (n=1,566) 45
Education
High school or less (n=2,377) 42%
Some college (n=1,763) 57
College graduate (n=1,922) 64
Race/Ethnicity
White (n=4,816) 53%
Black (n=722) 26
Hispanic (n=741) 33
Support for Organ Donation
Support (n=5,247) 54%
Oppose (n=366) 27
- Support for the use of animal organs in transplantation as an
alternative to human organs is well below the level of support for
the general concept of organ donation. Nevertheless, the majority of
Americans (50%) approve of the procedure.
- Women are less inclined than men to favor the transplanting of
animal organs when human organs are unavailable.
- Persons with higher levels of educational attainment are more
likely to favor transplantation of animal organs.
- A much lower percentage of nonwhites than whites favor this procedure.
Alternative Approaches 45
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TABLE 34
If You Needed an Organ Transplant to Regain Your Health, Would You
Accept an Organ Transplant From An Animal If a Suitable Human Organ
Was Not Available?
Percent
Total (n=6,127) 51 %
Gender
Male (n=2,589) 59%
Female (n=3,538) 44
Age
18-24 (n=695) 51%
25-34 (n=1,442) 50
35-44 (n=1,465) 57
45-54 (n=889) 58
55+ (n=1,566) 44
Education
High school or less (n=2,377) 43%
Some college (n=1,763) 58
College Graduate (n=1,922) 65
Race/Ethnicity
White (n=4,816) 53%
Black (n=722) 32
Hispanic (n=741) 35
Support of Organ Donation
Support (n=5,247) 55%
Oppose (n=366) 25
* 4=strongly agree, 3=agree, 2=disagree, 1=strongly disagree
- More than half of Americans would accept an animal organ
transplant if no suitable human organ was available. The results of
Table 34 mirror those found in Table 33 in that women are less
inclined to accept a transplanted animal organ when no human organs
are available than are men. Nonwhite respondents are less likely
than white respondents to accept an animal organ.
46 Alternative Approaches
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