THE MACHINE AGE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

THE MACHINE AGE - Essay Example He is quoted as saying he would not do it again, that the transplant destroyed his quality of life. A $125,000 dollar settlement was given to his wife in 2003 by AbioCor Corporation based on deceit by hospital patient advocates who had encouraged the procedure while actually working for AbioCor. AbioCor was denied FDA approval to sell the heart to extend life. African Americans represent a large number of medical test subjects, even though they are the minority of the population in the US—and they are even less likely to be able to afford expensive procedures tested on them. Historically, African American women were used as test subjects. Consent forms are required for medical testing, and participants can quit any time. With tests like artificial hearts, however, quitting means dying. AbioCor went a step further and request to be able to test on unconscious subjects that had never given consent. This has been done with PolyHeme artificial blood, but never with a life-threaten ing procedure like an experimental heart transplant. African Americans are 20% less likely to select to participate in â€Å"health proxy† treatments like these, therefore giving the artificial heart without consent would affect African Americans more, making it unjust. Three Big Points (Summary of the Summary, non-essay form, per your request). 1.