The Knesset Legal Committee yesterday rejected an Agudat Israel proposal to prohibit the implementation of heart transplants in Israel.
In rejecting the proposal, suggested by Agudat Knesset member Shlomo Lorincz, the committee called on the Knesset and the Health Ministry to expedite legislation defining all types of organ transplants. At present, there is no legally binding arrangement concerning the situation. The doctors with whom the committee spoke noted the need for such a legal arrangement, which would allow them to act in accordance, committee chairman David Glass of the National Religious Party, reported.
Glass added the committee’s findings are similar to those of the scientific community and that the future development of medical science is largely dependent on the implementation of transplants. “It is vital to develop the implementation of transplants in this country,” Glass noted. “At times, organ transplants, including hearts, are a vital step to saving the life of a human being.”
It is on this aspect of organ transplants that the Knesset members are divided. However, Glass said that he does not expect political repercussions because of the committee’s findings. “Both Chief Rabbis of Israel have agreed to implementation of transplants when a life is at stake,” he observed. (By Barbie Zelizer-Meyouhas)
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