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Pediatric kidney transplant in undocumented immigrants: An American perspectives
Author(s) -
Yu Elizabeth,
Wightman Aaron
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
pediatric transplantation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.457
H-Index - 69
eISSN - 1399-3046
pISSN - 1397-3142
DOI - 10.1111/petr.13788
Subject(s) - medicine , immigration , legislature , kidney transplant , inclusion (mineral) , kidney transplantation , transplantation , family medicine , intensive care medicine , law , surgery , gender studies , political science , sociology
Kidney transplant in undocumented immigrants remains controversial. While in the United States the National Organ Transplant Act does not prohibit inclusion of these patients as transplant candidates, legislative and financial barriers and ethical concerns remain. The purpose of this article was to review the legal and financial barriers to kidney transplant for children with ESKD who are undocumented immigrants and consider arguments for and against inclusion of these children as kidney transplant candidates. While this discussion is largely restricted to the experience in the United States and its unique healthcare system, the themes and ideas may be more generalizable to the experience in many high‐income countries. We conclude that access to kidney transplant is legal, ethically justifiable, and clearly in the best interest of these children. Transplant professionals should continue to advocate for changes in policy and greater resources to support these patients.