Anger over Croatian Law & IVF Blunders
Good Monday Morning to all! Today's focus in Europe, specifically Croatia, where they have some of the strictest IVF laws. At this point the legistlature has voted to restrict IVF treatment to married couples and only those who can prove that they have been together for at least three years. Furthermore, they are also prohibiting the freezing of embryos left over from any treatment. Donors of eggs and sperm can also no longer be anonymous, and the information can be accessed at the age of 18 by the child.
Critics claim that this new legislation is going to stop IVF treatment all across the country. The President has referred the legislation to the Constitutional Court, where childless couples and individuals will have to wait until next April for a hearing.
In the UK, a leading IVF lawyer is appalled at the latest figures regarding IVF clinic blunders just released by HFEA. "Figures released yesterday by the HFEA under the Freedom of Information Act showed a catalogue of blunders at some of the countrys top IVF clinics, including staff dropping embryos, eggs and sperm on the floor or samples being mistakenly thrown out with the rubbish. Failed storage equipment also meant that frozen embryos and sperm samples thawed which could in some cases lead to a familys last chance of having a natural child of their own being lost. "
"The figures show that between April 2005 and March 2006 140 incidents and near misses were reported to the HFEA. Of these 91 were categorised as Grade A being the most severe with 38 Grade B incidents and 11 near miss incidents. The report Driving Improvement which is available from the HFEA website here confirmed that the most serious incidents include the loss of gametes (eggs or sperm) and embryos through dropping dishes or tripping or accidental disposal and that equipment failure compromised viable embryos."
This is certainly a tragedy for all patients involved.
"Muiris Lyons added I have acted for a number of people who have lost gametes or embryos in claims against the clinics involved. The recent report shows the scale of the problem which has plainly affected a significant number of people.
The most serious IVF blunder in the UK occurred in Leeds in 2002 when mixed race babies were born to a white couple after a womans eggs were fertilised with the wrong man's sperm."
"The case gave rise to the recent acclaimed Channel 4 docu-drama Born with Two Mothers "Born with Two Mothers" in which Muiris appeared as himself advising one of the couples involved in the mix-up. The plot device was also used in the third series of hit American show Desperate Housewives which aired on Channel 4for the first time in the UK last week where childless couple Gabrielle and Carlos Solis were the victims of an IVF clinic blunder which resulted in their surrogate mother giving birth to a black child following an embryo mix-up."
Ouch!
