Kidney for Sale! Kidney for Sale!

Not exactly a new story but I still found "Human Kidneys for Sale" to be interesting. It aired on public radio and was filed from India by filmmaker Samantha Grant. What I found especially disturbing was Grant's observation that

"India's Ministry of Tourism is promoting what's being called Transplant Tourism, aimed at drawing wealthy foreigners in search of a cheap medical fix. Its website even has a page called 'high-tech healing' and boasts that a 'kidney transplant package' in India would cost only $7,000, a fraction of what it costs in the developed world."

(The Web site she's referring to is Incredible India. According to the site, India also offers wellness services such as bone marrow transplants, joint replacement surgery, and, of course, yoga.)

Grant's documentary on the same subject can be viewed online at PBS FRONTLINEt/World. I haven't had a chance yet to check it out, but it's only about 11 mins. long. (Though the ending probably won't be as satisfying as that of Dirty Pretty Things, the Stephen Frears-directed film about the human organ trade. It's excellent!--I highly recommend it.)

Filed in: Culture Politics Movies