Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.21860/j.15.2.6
Kantian Dignity and the Allocation of Scarce, Life Saving Resources
Samuel Kerstein
orcid.org/0000-0002-5240-4424
; Department of Philosophy, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, U.S.A.
Abstract
This article explores how we ought, morally speaking, to allocate scarce, life-saving resources such as ventilators or intensive care beds. When there are not enough resources to distribute to all who want and need them, who should receive them? Through an examination of several cases, the article probes the implications regarding this question of two Kantian accounts of respect for the dignity of persons, one an orthodox Kantian account based on an interpretation of the Formula of Humanity and the other an unorthodox reconstruction of part of this formula. The article also investigates the implications of a contemporary triage scheme developed during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Pittsburgh Framework. Each of these three bases for scarce resource distribution has some plausible and implausible results regarding cases that involve patients of various ages, future lifespans (if given the resource), and socioeconomic status (disadvantage). While the article does not intend to vindicate or condemn any one method of distribution, it does aim to illustrate that Kantian thinking can play a salutary role in making hard decisions about scarce medical resource allocation.
Keywords
triage; Kant; dignity; COVID-19; equity; respect for persons; scarce resource allocation
Hrčak ID:
329675
URI
Publication date:
31.3.2025.
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