Finding donors typically takes the form of spreading the word via private organizations or government agencies such as the Secretary of State’s office, which has “public service announcements on televisions in the waiting areas, as well as rugs and pamphlets encouraging people to register.”

Opting out, also known as “presumed consent,” is the flip side to the current approach. Presumed consent operates under the notion that everyone is an organ donor unless they specify otherwise.

That is, instead of checking a box to acknowledge a desire to donate, a resident checks to box to show they do not want to be a donor. Some countries, such as Spain, Belgium, Austria and France, have presumed consent laws. In most cases of presumed consent, families are still able to decide whether a family member’s organs can be harvested. By some estimates, switching to an opt-out model has increased organ donation by margins ranging from 25 to 30 percent.

This, of course, is where things get tricky. Depending on what ethics or interpretation one uses when looking at presumed consent, the results can be quite different. For example, Kieran Healy is an associate professor in sociology at the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University, and said on the New York Times website, “Spain’s success is due to effective management of the transplant system, not a simple legal rule. Similarly, Italy’s donation rate grew rapidly in the 1990s thanks to investment in its system. Some countries, notably Austria, do have ‘true’ presumed consent, with no kin veto. But they do not outperform countries like the U.S. by any great margin.”

Without going into the ethics of the decision, what presumed consent appears to address is the disconnect between the public desire to donate and the lack of donations. A survey conducted by Donate Life America found nearly 57 percent of U.S. residents supported donation. A 1993 Gallup survey found 85 percent of U.S. residents favor organ donation and 69 percent would like to donate their organs after death. Yet the national average remains less than 40 percent.

The point of presumed consent is not to let apathy to act become a detriment. For example, in the Donate Life America survey, 23 percent of respondents were either undecided or against transplants. Another 19 percent were not sure if they were acceptable. Those are lives that could be saved.

Any new policy would need safeguards and an educational program to counter myths and fears that go along with organ transplantation. However, with more than 6,000 people dying on organ transplant lists each year, it might be time for inaction to save lives instead of end them.