Contemporary Debates in Bioethics
Contemporary Debates in Philosophy Series

Contemporary Debates in Bioethics features a timely collection of highly readable, debate-style arguments contributed by many of today's top bioethics scholars, focusing on core bioethical concerns of the twenty-first century.

• Written in an engaging, debate-style format for accessibility to non-specialists
• Features general introductions to each topic that precede scholarly debates
• Presents the latest, cutting-edge thoughts on relevant bioethics ideas, arguments, and debates

Acknowledgments xiv

General Introduction 1

References 8

Part 1 Are There Universal Ethical Principles That Should Govern the Conduct of Medicine and Research Worldwide? 13

Introduction 13

References 15

1 There Are Universal Ethical Principles That Should Govern the Conduct of Medicine and Research Worldwide 17
Daryl Pullman

2 There Are No Universal Ethical Principles That Should Govern the Conduct of Medicine and Research Worldwide 27
Kevin S. Decker

Reply to Decker 36

Reply to Pullman 39

Part 2 Is It Morally Acceptable to Buy and Sell Organs for Human Transplantation? 43

Introduction 43

References 45

3 It Is Morally Acceptable to Buy and Sell Organs for Human Transplantation: Moral Puzzles and Policy Failures 47
Mark J. Cherry

4 It Is Not Morally Acceptable to Buy and Sell Organs for Human Transplantation: A Very Poor Solution to a Very Pressing Problem 59
Arthur L. Caplan

Reply to Caplan 68

Reply to Cherry 70

Part 3 Were It Physically Safe, Would Human Reproductive Cloning Be Acceptable? 73

Introduction 73

References 76

5 Were It Physically Safe, Human Reproductive Cloning Would Be Acceptable 79
Katrien Devolder

6 Were It Physically Safe, Human Reproductive Cloning Would Not Be Acceptable 89
Stephen E. Levick

Reply to Levick 98

Reply to Devolder 101

Part 4 Is the Deliberately Induced Abortion of a Human Pregnancy Ethically Justifiable? 105

Introduction 105

References 109

7 The Deliberately Induced Abortion of a Human Pregnancy Is Ethically Justifiable 111
Jeffrey Reiman

8 The Deliberately Induced Abortion of a Human Pregnancy Is Not Ethically Justifiable 120
Don Marquis

Reply to Marquis 129

Reply to Reiman 132

Part 5 Is It Ethical to Patent or Copyright Genes, Embryos, or Their Parts? 137

Introduction 137

References 141

9 It Is Ethical to Patent or Copyright Genes, Embryos, or Their Parts 143
Lawrence M. Sung

10 It Is Not Ethical to Patent or Copyright Genes, Embryos, or Their Parts 152
David Koepsell

Reply to Koepsell 162

Reply to Sung 164

Part 6 Should a Child Have the Right to Refuse Medical Treatment to Which the Child’s Parents or Guardians Have Consented? 167

Introduction 167

References 171

11 The Child Should Have the Right to Refuse Medical Treatment to Which the Child’s Parents or Guardians Have Consented 173
William J. Winslade

12 The Child Should Not Have the Right to Refuse Medical Treatment to Which the Child’s Parents or Guardians Have Consented 181
Catherine M. Brooks

Reply to Brooks 192

Reply to Winslade 194

Part 7 Is Physician-Assisted Suicide Ever Ethical? 197

Introduction 197

References 201

13 Physician-Assisted Suicide Is Ethical 203
John Lachs

14 Physician-Assisted Suicide Is Not Ethical 213
Patrick Lee

Reply to Lee 222

Reply to Lachs 225

Part 8 Should Stem-Cell Research Utilizing Embryonic Tissue Be Conducted? 229

Introduction 229

References 233

15 Stem-Cell Research Utilizing Embryonic Tissue Should Be Conducted 237
Jane Maienschein

16 Stem-Cell Research Utilizing Embryonic Tissue Should Not Be Conducted 248
Bertha Alvarez Manninen

Joint Reply 259

Part 9 Should We Prohibit the Use of Chimpanzees and Other Great Apes in Biomedical Research? 261

Introduction 261

References 268

17 We Should Prohibit the Use of Chimpanzees and Other Great Apes in Biomedical Research 271
Jean Kazez

18 We Should Not Prohibit the Use of Chimpanzees and Other Great Apes in Biomedical Research 281
Carl Cohen

Reply to Cohen 291

Reply to Kazez 294

Part 10 Should the United States of America Adopt Universal Healthcare? 297

Introduction 297

References 301

19 The United States of America Should Adopt Universal Healthcare 303
John Geyman

20 The United States of America Should Not Adopt Universal Healthcare: Let’s Try Freedom Instead 314
Glen Whitman

Reply to Whitman 327

Reply to Geyman 331

Part 11 Is There a Legitimate Place for Human Genetic Enhancement? 335

Introduction 335

References 339

21 There Is a Legitimate Place for Human Genetic Enhancement 343
Nicholas Agar

22 There Is No Legitimate Place for Human Genetic Enhancement: The Slippery Slope to Genocide 353
Edwin Black

Reply to Black 363

Reply to Agar 366

Part 12 Can There Be Agreement as to What Constitutes Human Death? 369

Introduction 369

References 374

23 There Can Be Agreement as to What Constitutes Human Death 377
James L. Bernat

24 There Cannot Be Agreement as to What Constitutes Human Death: Against Definitions, Necessary and Sufficient Conditions, and Determinate Boundaries 388
Winston Chiong

Reply to Chiong 397

Reply to Bernat 399

Part 13 Is There Ever a Circumstance in Which a Doctor May Withhold Information? 401

Introduction 401

References 407

25 There Are Circumstances in Which a Doctor May Withhold Information 409
Tom L. Beauchamp

26 There Are No Circumstances in Which a Doctor May Withhold Information 418
Jason T. Eberl

Reply to Eberl 428

Reply to Beauchamp 431

Part 14 Should In Vitro Fertilization Be an Option for a Woman? 435

Introduction 435

References 439

27 In Vitro Fertilization Should Be an Option for a Woman 441
Laura Purdy

28 In Vitro Fertilization Should Not Be an Option for a Woman 451
Christopher Tollefsen

Reply to Tollefsen 460

Reply to Purdy 462

Part 15 Are International Clinical Trials Exploitative? 465

Introduction 465

References 470

29 Clinical Trials Are Inherently Exploitative: The Likelihood That They Are Is High 473
Jamie Carlin Watson

30 International Clinical Trials Are Not Inherently Exploitative 485
Richard J. Arneson

Reply to Arneson 495

Reply to Watson 498

Index 501

Arthur L. Caplan is the Drs. William F. and Virginia Connolly Mitty Professor and Head of the Division of Bioethics at New York University Langone Medical Center in New York City. He is the author or editor of 30 books and more than 550 papers in refereed journals. His most recent books are Smart Mice Not So Smart People (2006) and the Penn Guide to Bioethics (2009).

Robert Arp is co-editor of Contemporary Debates in Philosophy of Biology (2009), author of Scenario Visualization: An Evolutionary Account of Creative Problem Solving (2008) and co-editor of Information and Living Systems: Philosophical and Scientific Perspectives (2011).