Massachusetts politicians who proposed that prison inmates could reduce their sentences if they donated organs have retreated from their original proposal.

BioEdge was one of the first publications to highlight the bill in the Massachusetts legislature. Representative Judith Garcia, a co-sponsor, attempted to explain her position. She tweeted: “This bill was written at the request of incarcerated individuals who hope to help loved ones in extreme circumstances. With the help of incarcerated ppl & advocates, we’re in the process of amending the bill, removing sentence reductions & clarifying the proposed protocol.”

It turns out that “filing the bill was only the start of a much-needed conversation.”

A theologian and bioethicist at Boston College, Father Andrea Vicini, commented that the original proposal “is not attentive to the condition of vulnerability of these individual human beings, and is undermining the needed free consent, free and informed consent” for medical procedures.