Chinese citizens, including those in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, should be given priority in human organ transplants (where the donors are also Chinese citizens) said Huang Jiefu, Vice Minister of Health, at the National Clinical Application of Human Organ Transplantation Summit, held Tuesday in Guangzhou, the capital of Guandong province.

It is prohibited for medical institutions to canvass patients from overseas. No organ may be given to a person on a tourist visa to China. In special cases there is a particular procedure to follow.

China, like other countries, experiences a serious shortage of human organs for transplant. Approximately 1.5 million people need an organ transplant every year, but only 10,000 of them receive it.

The World Health Organization stipulates that priority be given to nationals within their own country.

By People's Daily Online