Expect new law on organ donations

Debate at Columbus Centre with George Marcello, Liberal and Tory MPPs and students

By Alan Patarga

A new bill with strong government backing was the main announcement heard at a debate held Tuesday at Columbus Centre. The discussion was promoted by Step by Step, the association founded by George Marcello to promote organ donation and supported by Multimedia Nova Corporation, parent company of Corriere Canadese/Tandem and a dozen other newspapers.
The announcement came from MPP Jean-Marc Lalonde, who discussed the upcoming moves of Health minister George Smitherman on the organ donation issue. "There is a concrete possibility," said the Liberal MPP, "that before the end of the year the provincial government will table a bill integrating and harmonizing the proposals currently being debated at Queen's Park."

Lalonde did not say it explicitly, but the bills to be 'integrated and harmonized' should be the one carrying his signature, another signed by Dave Levac (Liberal Whip at Queen's Park), and one by Tory MPP Frank Klees. The three bills are in fact relatively easy to integrate, as all mandate minor changes to the current system. Lalonde's bill would call for the creation of a centralized, easily accessible registry of organ donors, administered by the Trillium Gift of Life Network. Klees' bill would make it compulsory to answer a question on organ donation when obtaining or renewing a driving licence: the question would be put on the licence request form and allow people to answer 'undecided.' Levac's bill proposes the establishment of courses on education to organ donation in all Ontario schools. The story is different for the bill submitted by NDP's Peter Kormos (who had been invited to the debate but excused himself at the last minute): it includes an opt-out clause that is still controversial in Parliament and public opinion.

The unified bill on organ donation was not the only novelty unveiled in the debate, which was moderated by Donina Lombardi and saw the participation of MPPs Lalonde and Klees, our own Angelo Persichilli, and Step by Step founder George Marcello.

"Every three days, someone dies waiting for an organ," was the abrupt opening chosen by Klees. "I have personally known several people who were wasting away waiting; before their bodies reached the point of no-return, they chose to go to the United States, in Miami or Buffalo. Ontario must do something to respond to what amounts to an emergency, growing by the day. At present, only 34 percent of people manifest their intentions on donations. My bill is intended to reveal the will of Ontario residents, saving as many lives as possible. Even the possibility to declare oneself 'undecided' is important, because it allows many people - who normally wouldn't even think about it - to ask themselves whether they want to become potential donors, and get informed."

Persichilli asked the two MPPs why the focus is always on organ donors and not on organ recipients. "That's right," replied Klees; "every one of us might one day need a transplant. My commitment began when I witnessed the desperate wait for organs of some friends whose lives were at stake." Lalonde said he is in favour of debating all points of view, adding that - in order to boost donation - questionnaires could be distributed in every governmental office of Ontario.
The absence of Peter Kormos weighed heavily on the debate, especially because his bill includes the most controversial, yet undoubtedly most useful trait: the opt-out provision whereby, lacking an explicit will to the contrary, physicians would presume that any deceased person would consent to donation. This model, already applied in Spain, has long been advocated by George Marcello, who mentioned that the McGuinty cabinet does not consider Ontarians ready for this revolutionary change. "But should a public discussion on this take place, and were a majority of Ontarians to express approval for this provision, would you support it?" asked Marcello to Klees and Lalonde. Both answered affirmatively, although claiming that conditions for this do not exist at present. This is the reason for excluding the Kormos bill from the integration and harmonization process that should lead to a new bill, officially backed by minister Smitherman.

The schoolchildren of the nearby Dante Alighieri Academy attended the debate, posing questions and showing their curiosity and willingness to explore the issue. The event closed with the screening of a moving video made by Step by Step on the last nine years of campaigning, with George Marcello at the forefront. From the journeys across Canada to over 4,000 events organized throughout the country, from promises broken by various governments (Harris, Chrétien, McGuinty) to a phone call from Pope John Paul II. A wish was made, and it left a bitter aftertaste: "It took nine years. Let's hope that we won't need nine more before getting results."

Publication Date: 2006-05-14
Story Location: http://www.tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=6244