Just finished watching. Lots of pros and cons!

Saw Bulldinkie posting at the food forum.

I have it DVR'd, but I was thinking about Jannie and Bulldinkie too when I saw the topic in the newspaper TV guide this morning. I'll watch it later this week.

Los Angeles Times had a great article as well recently. Very touching, and I cried when I read it.

Here is a link that might be useful: L.A. Times son is a hero

Wonderfl article. They told me my donor was 53, female, a perfect blood type match and saved nine lives with her generous donation. I know she's up in Heaven right now being congratulated by THe Big Guy! Some people who need transplants prefer a younger match, and there's a special,list for recipients who will accept a kidney over age 50. Yes, I had signed for that one. She was 53, I'll be 60 in November so she was a "kid" to me!!!

timely but the show was so unreal, esp with jean smart's role, and the silly twin thing...come on! we've all watched enough of court tv to know her actions are so off base...

frankly i don't know the difference between giving an organ and carrying a child for a couple...those ladies get paid for the use of their bodies...besides..who would have paid the man's hosp bill for the operation, if he had been a relative?

According to my insurance company, the recipient's insurance pays all costs for the donor. However, the donor's family does not get any additional money. I am not allowed to know my donors name, so I can't pay them anything even I wanted to. There's a bill in New York State to make organ donation more common-instead of signing to be a donor, you would sign a card refusing to be a donor if that's your wish. I was told no religion actually forbids organ donation. But I see an ethical problem. If the state automatically "owns" your body after death, that's a slippery slope. I didn't see Harry's Law. Watched it a few times last year and I liked it but I didn't get really into it. Wish I had seen it.

Jannie, love your input on this! Hope you are feeling better and better every day.

I saw only the first part of the show, Jannie, but a man had no job and a family to care for, and he wanted to sell a kidney for $70,000. It's such an emotional issue--it's "only" $70,000 and would be gone soon enough, but the kids need their dad for their lifetimes, and he's putting himself at some risk, maybe not major, but some risk.

I've often wondered who pays the hospital expenses for the donor in the case of a live donor organ donation.

No balance sheet problems, whether related to the "donor" or the health people, (that I'm aware of) in the parallel situation in Canada.

o j

When my kidneys first failed (in 2001) a "friend" told me I could buy a kidney from a foreigner on the black market. The going cost at that time was $30,000. I didn't have 30 K to spare so I didn't follow up. I read a news article that most "bought" kidneys come from India and Eastern Europe. And then there's the Urban Legend of the guy who woke up in a bathtub full of ice and a kidney missing. That's not a true story.

That's a scary, risky business I imagine, born of desperation. Would you know if the person was healthy, had AIDS or what? I have heard there are brokers that you can contact for help, but I have no idea how that works since it's not legal here. Maybe it should be legal, I don't know.

I've wondered if their are countries where selling kidneys is legal, and you could go there for the surgery. Might not be covered by insurance, and maybe we don't want surgery in a Third World Country.