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Brazilians oppose abortion in the case of microcephaly
A survey published in the Folha de Sao Paulo on Monday revealed that most Brazilians (51%) are opposed to “allowing women whose unborn child has been diagnosed with microencephaly to have an abortion”. Abortion is illegal in Brazil except in the...
Debate surrounding IVF reimbursement in the United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, the Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group announced a change in its policy regarding MAP. Only one course of IVF therapy will be refunded by the NHS and cases in which one of the partners has a child from a previous or current relationship...
An English woman demands the right to be a surrogate mother for her deceased daughter
An English woman, currently aged 60, wishes to obtain the frozen eggs of her deceased daughter, have them fertilised by donor sperm and then to carry “her daughter’s children”. Since no English clinic has agreed to the operation, she is considering “exporting...
Legislation limits the surrogacy business
The international baby trade is in the throes of slowing down because countries that have promoted this practice to date are now restricting access to this service or banning it altogether. This is due to ethical considerations which oblige the countries concerned to...
A Swedish survey recommends a surrogacy ban
The conclusions of a surrogacy survey requested on behalf of the Swedish Government were announced last week. The report recommends a total ban on surrogacy be it for “commercial” or “Altruistic” purposes and to sanction couples who seek recourse to...
Clandestine abortion is decriminalised in Italy but carries a fine
The Italian Council of Ministers “has approved a legislative decree decriminalising clandestine abortion”. However, the decree suggests increasing the fine. Previously, this was set at €50, but could be increased to €5 to 10 000. The decree “should be introduced...
A Dutch man requests euthanasia and arranges to donate his organs
Recently, in the Netherlands, a man who underwent euthanasia donated his organs and “savedfive lives”. The procedure was carried out at the Erasmus Medical Centre in Rotterdam. The man “was suffering from the consequences of a stroke and therefore stated that he...
Belgium: What are the controls regarding substances used in euthanasia?
In Belgium, problems surrounding the control of palliative care medicines “are coming to the fore once again” through a proposal regarding legal issues surrounding the storage and transportation of medicinal products used in palliative care. This proposal is led by...
Chinese scientists create artificial murine spermatozoa from embryo stem cells
Yesterday, a team of Chinese scientists [1] published details in the Stem Cell journal of a study that has already been the subject of extensive debate: “They have developed a technique in mice allowing pre-spermatozoa with all of the fertility...
In Belgium more and more pregnant women have access to NIPS
In Belgium, the Health Minister and Health Insurance Companies “have not yet announced their decision regarding options for refunding Non-Invasive Prenatal Screening (NIPS)”. However, the tests are partly reimbursed by certain companies. The budgetary question...
Canada: Medical assistance to die or assisted suicide?
Today, Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould announced that, between now and 6 June, the Canadian Parliament would adopt a law authorising medically assisted dying. This announcement follows on from: · The Supreme...
Selecting an embryo for IVF – “just as easy as selecting ripe fruit”?
A team of geneticists and doctors have published an article in the Nature communications journal in which they state that the “suppleness”of an embryo can predict its viability. They hope to improve embryo selection and therefore the success of IVF by means of a...