Opt-in vs Opt-out

This information is important because it is helpful to understand different policies of different countries world wide. A controversial issue that I found deals with opt-in and opt-out system <-- deals with organ donations. Hopefully the bottom information clarifies my explanation. Opt In or Opt Out
The current "opt-in" system of organ donation – where individuals are asked to register their willingness to be a donor after their death – has been the subject of debate for many years.

~The United State favors this policy.

Opting out / presumed consent
Under a system of "opting out" or "presumed consent", every person living in that country is deemed to have given their consent to organ donation unless they have specifically "opted out" by recording in writing their unwillingness to give organs.

~Austria favors this policy.

Like many policies there is always Cons and Pros

Experience in other countries
Large disparities in organ donation rates exist throughout the world, despite the laws governing organ donation.

Some European countries with opt-out systems have higher donation rates than the UK. However there is no clear evidence that opt-out is the sole factor. The fact that Sweden has an opt-out law does not seem to influence the donation rate per million of population, which is lower than that of the UK, which does not. Within almost all countries, large local variations exist in donation rates, despite a common legislative background.

Opt-out systems can be "hard", as in Austria, where the views of close relatives are not taken into account, or "soft", as in Spain, where relatives' views are sought.

Different cultural attitudes to the disposal of bodies, greater provision of intensive care beds, more pro-active donation programmes and the numbers of road deaths, each play their part. However, the single most important factor so far identified is ensuring that the relatives of potential organ donors are always approached, and approached by someone specifically trained for the purpose, as happens in Spain.

In fact, while Spain is recognised as having a higher number of donors than the UK, it is acknowledged by the director of national transplant organisation in Spain himself that the increase in organ donation during the 1990s could not be attributed to a change in legislation which had remained the same since 1979. The improvements in donor rates in Spain followed the implementation of a comprehensive national procurement system.

http://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/ukt/newsroom/statements_and_stances/statements/opt_in_or_out.jsp