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Negotiating the value of your dead body would be a strange process. Would you get more money if you have an interesting mole or unique eye color? Would you get less if you have some plastic or metal parts? The Uniform Anatomical Gift Act makes certain types of payment for body parts illegal. Section 16 prohibits someone from buying or selling body parts for transplantation or therapy. However it does allow people to charge a fee for the "removal, processing, preservation, quality control, storage, transportation, implantation, or disposal of a part." And according to The Straight Dope, trafficking in body parts for education and research
still isn't well regulated, leading to abuse and some gruesome stories. Living people can participate in clinical trials -- a legal way to score cash from the scientific community. If all goes well, you finish up with some extra dough and go your merry way. But there may be some drawbacks to being a human guinea pig, and not everyone has a happy story to tell. If that doesn't sound appealing, you can always donate your blood, bone marrow, sperm, or eggs. After all, wouldn't you rather reap the benefits of your contributions to science while you're still alive?
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