West Virginia Code 16-19-10 – Manner of making, amending, or revoking anatomical gift of decedent’s body or part
(a) A person authorized to make an anatomical gift under section nine of this article may do so by:
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 16-19-10
- Anatomical gift: means a donation of all or part of a human body, to take effect after the donor's death, for the purpose of transplantation, therapy, research, or education. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Authorized person: means a person other than the donor who is authorized to make an anatomical gift of the donor's body or part by §. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Document of gift: means a donor card or other record used to make an anatomical gift. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
- Hospital: means a facility licensed as a hospital under the law of any state or a facility operated as a hospital by the United States, a state, or a subdivision of a state. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- in writing: includes any representation of words, letters, or figures, whether by printing, engraving, writing, or otherwise. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
- Part: means an organ, an eye, or tissue of a human being. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Person: means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation, government or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Physician: means an individual authorized to practice medicine or osteopathy under the law of any state. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Procurement organization: means an eye bank, organ procurement organization, or tissue bank. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Reasonably available: means able to be contacted by a procurement organization without undue effort and willing and able to act in a timely manner consistent with existing medical criteria necessary for the making of an anatomical gift. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Recipient: means an individual into whose body a decedent's part has been or is intended to be transplanted. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Revocation: means the affirmative declaration of the potential donor's withdrawal of their decision to make or not make a document of gift. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- Surrogate: means an individual 18 years of age or older who is reasonably available, is willing to make health care decisions on behalf of an incapacitated person, possesses the capacity to make health care decisions, and is identified or selected by the attending physician or advanced nurse practitioner in accordance with §. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
- technician: includes an enucleator, i. See West Virginia Code 16-19-3
(1) A document of gift signed by the authorized person; or
(2) An oral communication by the authorized person that is electronically recorded or is contemporaneously reduced to a record and signed by the person receiving the oral communication.
(b) An anatomical gift by a person authorized by section nine of this article may be amended or revoked orally or in writing by any member of a prior class who is reasonably available. If more than one member of the prior class is reasonably available, the gift made by the authorized person may be revoked only if a majority of the members of the same class are opposed to the anatomical gift. In the event of a tie vote, a health care surrogate shall be appointed to decide whether to honor, amend or revoke the anatomical gift of the decedent's body or part.
(c) A revocation under subsection (b) of this section is effective only if, before an incision has been made to remove a part from the donor's body or before invasive procedures have begun to prepare the recipient, the procurement organization, transplant hospital or physician or technician knows of the revocation.