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3.5 Attitudes Toward Financial Issues
It has been suggested that given our market economy, one
way to increase deceased organ donation is to provide financial
incentives 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.
It
has been suggested that more organs would be donated if families
who donate the organs of a deceased loved one received some
type of payment, 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 payments like these make you
more likely or less likely to donate (Your own/A family member's)
organs, or would it have no effect?
In the United States, 16.6% of the population say that they
would be "more likely" to donate their own organs
if paid an incentive, though most (72.2%) say a financial
incentive would have no effect on their decision. More than
eighteen percent (18.7%) also say that they would be "more
likely" to donate a family member's organs if paid an
incentive.
As shown in Figure 12, these values
have increased from 1993 to 2005. Being more likely to donate
one's own organs has increased from 12.0% in 1993 to 16.9%
in 2005. Being more likely to donate a family member's organs
has increased from 12.0% in 1993 to 18.7% in 2005. Interestingly,
a kind of polarization has occurred with both the proportion
reporting that incentives would make them more likely to donate
and the proportion reporting that incentives would make them
less likely to donate increasing over time.
Figure
12. Financial Incentives and Deceased Organ Donation, 1993–2005
Table 7 shows that a significantly
greater proportion of men (21.5%) than women (13.3%) report
that an incentive would make them more likely to donate their
organs. This belief is also strongly related to age. Among
those aged 18 to 34, 34.4% report they would be more likely
to donate if given an incentive, whereas only 7.0% of those
aged 55 or older report this. Blacks (23.7%) and Latinos (31.2%)
as well as those with high school educations or less (27.0%)
are more likely to say they would be influenced by incentives.
Financial protections are of interest with respect to living
donation.
Now
I am going to read you a few statements. For each one, please
tell me whether you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, or strongly disagree.
A. Living donors should be
compensated for any expenses related to their donation, such
as travel, child care, or lost wages.
B. Living donors should
not be denied health insurance or life insurance, nor should
they be required to pay greater premiums because they donated
an organ.
Table
7. Financial Issues by Sex, Age, Race/Ethnicity and Education
| |
All
|
Gender
|
Age
|
Race/Ethnicity
|
Education
|
|
Male
|
Female
|
18-34
|
35-54
|
55+
|
White
|
Black
|
Latino
|
Asian
|
High School or Less
|
Some College
|
College Grad
|
|
It has been suggested that
more organs would be donated if families who donate
the organs of a deceased loved one received some type
of payment, 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 payments
like these make you more likely or less likely to donate
YOUR OWN organs, or would it have no effect?
|
| More Likely |
16.9
|
21.5
|
13.3
|
34.4
|
15.2
|
7.0
|
12.7
|
23.7
|
31.2
|
15.6
|
27.0
|
17.6
|
16.9
|
| No Effect |
74.2
|
72.4
|
75.5
|
59.3
|
75.9
|
82.0
|
79.0
|
64.4
|
58.7
|
78.3
|
61.0
|
74.6
|
74.2
|
| Less Likely |
8.9
|
6.1
|
11.1
|
6.3
|
8.9
|
10.9
|
8.4
|
11.8
|
10.2
|
6.1
|
12.1
|
7.9
|
8.9
|
| Would
payments like these make you more likely or less likely
to donate a family member's organs, or would it have no
effect? |
| More Likely |
18.7
|
22.4
|
16.0
|
32.7
|
17.4
|
10.5
|
15.3
|
27.6
|
28.1
|
16.7
|
26.3
|
19.8
|
13.4
|
| No Effect |
72.4
|
70.2
|
74.0
|
60.3
|
73.0
|
80.2
|
76.6
|
59.7
|
62.2
|
75.3
|
64.6
|
72.4
|
77.1
|
| Less Likely |
8.9
|
7.3
|
10.0
|
6.9
|
9.6
|
9.3
|
8.2
|
12.7
|
9.7
|
8.1
|
9.1
|
7.7
|
9.5
|
| Living
donors should be compensated for any expenses related
to their donation, such as travel, child care, or lost
wages. |
| Strongly Agree |
52.3
|
49.9
|
54.1
|
50.6
|
55.0
|
50.5
|
53.2
|
56.9
|
44.8
|
54.4
|
50.6
|
48.2
|
56.4
|
| Somewhat Agree |
32.4
|
37.1
|
29.0
|
35.2
|
31.3
|
31.5
|
34.0
|
25.5
|
31.4
|
22.9
|
28.3
|
39.3
|
29.6
|
| Somewhat Disagree
|
8.1
|
8.2
|
8.0
|
8.2
|
7.8
|
8.2
|
6.8
|
7.8
|
12.1
|
19.1
|
9.7
|
6.9
|
8.0
|
| Strongly Disagree
|
7.2
|
4.8
|
9.0
|
6.0
|
5.9
|
9.8
|
6.1
|
9.8
|
11.7
|
3.6
|
11.4
|
5.6
|
5.9
|
|
Living donors should not
be denied health insurance or life insurance, nor should
theybe required to pay greater premiums because they
donated an organ.
|
| Strongly Agree |
73.5
|
71.4
|
75.1
|
65.6
|
78.6
|
72.2
|
77.6
|
71.9
|
53.3
|
75.5
|
63.9
|
74.1
|
78.9
|
| Somewhat Agree |
13.5
|
14.5
|
12.8
|
23.8
|
10.6
|
10.5
|
10.2
|
12.9
|
29.3
|
14.9
|
17.2
|
14.0
|
10.9
|
| Somewhat Disagree
|
6.2
|
8.4
|
4.6
|
5.9
|
6.0
|
6.8
|
6.3
|
5.0
|
8.4
|
5.4
|
7.4
|
5.6
|
6.0
|
| Strongly Disagree
|
6.8
|
5.8
|
7.5
|
4.7
|
4.8
|
10.6
|
5.9
|
10.2
|
9.0
|
4.3
|
11.6
|
6.3
|
4.1
|
| N of Cases |
2,341
|
848
|
1,493
|
569
|
1,005
|
743
|
1,009
|
506
|
540
|
213
|
654
|
730
|
949
|
For example, Figure 13 shows that
52.3% of Americans "strongly agree" that living
donors should be compensated for any expenses related to their
donation, such as travel, child care, or lost wages. Additionally,
73.5% "strongly agree" that living donors should
not be denied health insurance or life insurance, nor should
they be required to pay greater premiums because they donated
an organ.
Figure
13. Financial Protection for Living Donors, 2005
As illustrated in Table 7, men (49.9%)
are less likely than women (54.1%) to "strongly agree"
that living donors should be reimbursed, but men (71.4%) are
slightly less likely than women (75.1%) to "strongly
agree" that living donors should not be denied life insurance.
Age is not systematically related to attitudes toward finances
and living donation. However, Latinos (44.8%) are less likely
than the other racial/ethnic groups to strongly agree that
living donors should be compensated or that living donors
should not be denied life insurance (53.3%). Those with high
school educations or less (63.9%) are less likely to "strongly
agree" that living donors should not be denied life insurance
than are those with some college (74.1%) or college graduates
(78.9%). But education does not have a systematic relationship
with agreement that living donors should be reimbursed for
donation-related expenses.
Some
of the items used in the survey questionnaire for this study
are proprietary content owned by The Gallup Organization.
A complete list is found on the Copyright
page. Copyright © 1993, 2005 The Gallup Organization,
Washington, D.C. All rights reserved.
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