The Opposition Liberals in New Brunswick want to see consent for organ donation move to an ‘opt-out’ or deemed consent format.
The intention is now indicated through a resident’s provincial Medicare card.
Nichole Elizabeth is the New Brunswick director for the Canadian Transplant Association.
She said people waiting for organ transplants and their families like changes to the process.
“So I think it’s positive move in the sense that it gets us talking about how we can make improvements,” Elizabeth said.
Nicole Elizabeth of CTA said some people do not want the process to change and it has to do with how they feel people should be approached when it comes to organ donation.
“And their view of organ donation as a gift that we should accept from people on their own accord rather than making any assumptions or presumptions about whether or not they would want to be organ donors,” Elizabeth said.
Opposition Liberal Health Critic and Edmundston-Madawaska MLA Jean-Claude D’Amours said there are over 140 New Brunswickers waiting for transplants. He said the stress they and their families experience waiting to receive word of a positive match is extraordinary. Anything governments can do to improve tissue and organ donation will be received with “great relief and renewed hope”.
The proposed amendment, An Act to Amend the Human Tissue Gift Act. put forward by the Liberal party was sent to committee for further review.
