February 25, 2024

Alabama hospital puts pause on IVF in wake of ruling saying frozen embryos are children

There are really two issues here: The failure to implant and the failure to thrive after implantation.  As the father of an IVF son, I am acutely aware of the issues.

My wife undertook 10 IVF treatment cycles with only one embryo implanting.  And it grieves me to this day that many of my children went down the drain.  I would have loved them all.  But to me there was no fault by any person involved.  It is just nature's way that many embryos are lost during menstruation.  Though I suppose that an argument could be mounted that taking any part in IVF is willingly creating life that will mostly not survive.  You are both creating life and extinguishing it

In the abortion debate it has to me always seemed nonsenense to say that a "fetus" is not a human being.  It is clearly just a human being at an early stage of growth.  So  I do have some understanding of the Alabama ruling.  And I am an atheist so there is no religious issue involved in my case. 

But there are clearly many adverse consequences of the ruling so I would say that a fertiized egg that is never implanted has never begun the process of developing so should not be regarded as a human person.  A ruling to such an effect may be needed to allow IVF  and its great blessings to continue

A large Alabama hospital has paused in vitro fertilisation treatments as health care providers weigh the impact of a state court ruling that frozen embryos are the legal equivalent of children.

The University of Alabama at Birmingham said in a statement Wednesday that its UAB Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility has paused the treatments "as it evaluates the Alabama Supreme Court's decision that a cryopreserved embryo is a human being."

"We are saddened that this will impact our patients' attempt to have a baby through IVF, but we must evaluate the potential that our patients and our physicians could be prosecuted criminally or face punitive damages for following the standard of care for IVF treatments," the statement emailed by spokeswoman Savannah Koplon read.

The ruling by the all-Republican Alabama Supreme Court prompted a wave of concern about the future of IVF treatments in the state and the potential unintended consequences of extreme anti-abortion laws in Republican-controlled states.

Patients called clinics to see if scheduled IVF treatments would continue. And providers consulted with attorneys.

https://www.9news.com.au/world/alabama-us-hospital-pauses-ivf-in-wake-of-ruling-saying-frozen-embryos-are-children/14ded1e2-6f32-4abb-bb1f-f12fcb630954

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