Lawmakers in two US states, outraged by Nadya Suleman, California's Octomom, are seeking to limit the number of embryos that may be implanted by fertility clinics
Lawmakers in two US states, outraged by Nadya Suleman, California's Octomom, are seeking to limit the number of embryos that may be implanted by fertility clinics.
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The legislation in Missouri and Georgia is intended to spare taxpayers from footing the bill for women having more children than they can afford. But critics say the measures also would make having even one child more difficult for women who desperately want to become mothers.
"What they are proposing is a cookie-cutter, one-size-fits-all approach," said Dr Andrew Toledo, medical director of the Atlanta-based Reproductive Biology Associates. "Not every couple and not every patient is the same."
Infertility doctors argue that decisions on how many embryos to transfer should be left up to medical experts familiar with a patient's individual circumstances.
An ethical debate has raged since Nadya Suleman gave birth to octuplets on January 26. She has six other children, lives in her mother's three-bedroom home and has relied on food stamps and disability income to provide for her family. Her ability to care for the children has been questioned several times.
"It's unforgivable," said Ralph Hudgens, a state senator who is sponsoring the Georgia bill. "This woman already has six children. She's unemployed, and she's going and having 14 children on the backs of the taxpayers."
The proposal
Hudgens, a Republican, has proposed legislation that would allow no more than two embryos to be implanted at any one time in a woman younger than 40. For women older than 40, the legislation would limit the number of embryos to three to account for increased difficulty getting pregnant.
Supporters say the measure is needed to rein in lucrative baby-making businesses often more concerned with success rates and profit than with ethics.
Hudgens, a Republican, agreed to sponsor the bill after being approached by the Georgia Right to Life group. The proposal comes up for a hearing Thursday before the Senate's Health and Human Services Committee.
Supporters say the bill would cut down on the number of unused embryos. But opponents argue that would severely limit the options of women paying $10,000 to $15,000 for each fertility cycle.
"It's just not a good thing to be having that many multiple births if you can avoid it," said Missouri state Rep. Rob Schaaf, a family physician who sponsored the bill. "I'm just simply saying keep the risk down."
The other side
The legislative efforts concern Bernita Malloy, a federal prosecutor in Atlanta who said she would not have been able to have her daughter under the proposed law. It took 25 eggs and three in-vitro cycles for her to conceive one child.
"They are legislating based on a knee-jerk reaction," Malloy said. "What they don't get is every embryo doesn't make a baby. This bill is devastating."
Legal experts say limiting a woman's right to procreate raises constitutional concerns.
"I think it raises huge legal questions," said Ruth Claiborne, an Atlanta lawyer specialising in family law and infertility issues. "There are individual legal interests in procreation, and I think you would almost certainly see this challenged (in the courts)."
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