Tissue Exemptions
The purpose of provincial/territorial tissue donation legislation is to facilitate the process of transplantation and to prevent the development of a market in human tissue. The inclusion of a provision for the prohibition on the sale of “any tissue” and “any body or part or parts thereof” for “therapeutic purposes, medical education or scientific research” is intended to prevent the commodification of human body parts. While some provinces have amended their legislation to make it clear that certain tissues are excluded from the application of their legislation (see Alberta and Nova Scotia), others have only exempted certain, specific tissues from their definition of “tissue.” This creates uncertainty as to whether the sales prohibition applies to exempt tissues or not. There are also other grey areas that emerge from the relationship between legislation and regulations, as in Saskatchewan, for example, prohibitions on sale are “subject to the regulations” and the 2018 regulations add a partial exemption for corneas.
The following table provides an overview of tissues that are exempt from the definition of “tissue” or have been clearly exempt from the application of the legislation. Exemption from the legislation leaves open the possibility that the tissues in question could be commodified.
