Proposed legislation to provide an opt-out system of consent for deceased organ donation has been published.
Following lengthy political and public consultation, the general scheme of the Human Tissue Bill was announced by Minister for Health Simon Harris this afternoon.
The bill includes provision for the removal, donation and use of organs and tissues from deceased and living people for the purpose of transplantation.
A significant aspect to the bill is an opt-out system of consent for organ donation and for an associated register.
The system, according to the Health Service Executive, is required to optimise organ donation rates.
Mr Harris said the bill would introduce a modern legislative framework for organ donation.
He said it would also change the culture of organ donation.
The proposed legislation arose out of recommendations made in a report by Dr Deirdre Madden in 2006.
Ms Madden examined how organs were removed from deceased children without parental consent and her report made suggestions regarding the consent of parents, and next-of-kin.
In 2008, the late Senator Feargal Quinn, who was an advocate for organ donation, introduced a Private Member's Bill called the 'Human Body Organs & Human Tissue Bill'.
Since then, a number of governments promised to publish the bill.
While Mr Harris published the Heads of the Bill two years ago; the public consultation process was lengthy.
The Irish Kidney Association said many countries have gone the opt-out route ,but this approach on its own is not the solution.
It said that specialist nurses for organ donation need to be deployed to cover all hospitals that have an intensive care unit.
It also said that altruistic living kidney donation has yet to be introduced in Ireland, which would allow people to donate to those unrelated to them.
The association also wants a potential donor audit conducted, to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the system.
Additional Reporting Fergal Bowers
