Two-Part NPR Series Examines Ethical Issues Surrounding Reproductive Health Technologies

Main Category: Fertility
Article Date: 02 Aug 2005 - 0:00 PDT

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NPR's "All Things Considered" in a two-part series on Thursday and Friday examined some of the ethical issues surrounding recent advances in reproductive health technologies. The first part of the series examined the debate over whether egg donors should be financially compensated and whether there should be regulations governing the practice. The process of egg donation carries some risk, and although the sale of human organs and tissue is illegal in the U.S., the country is one of the only industrialized nations in the world that allows the sale of human eggs, according to NPR. Compensation for the practice usually averages about $5,000 but can reach $50,000 or more. The first segment includes comments from Cynthia Cohen, an instructor at the Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University and former executive director of the National Advisory Board on Ethics and Reproduction; Julia Derek, author of the book "Confessions of a Serial Egg Donor," who donated eggs 12 times, exceeding the American Society for Reproductive Medicine's recommended limit of six donations; Lisah Horner, a woman who donated eggs four times and was paid $2,500 each time; and Kathy Stern, director and counselor for Southwest Surrogacy Arrangements and Parenting Options (Norris, "All Things Considered," NPR, 7/28). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

Age Limit for Childbirth?
The second part of the series examined whether there should be an age limit for women to receive assisted reproductive technologies and undergo childbirth, as well as an age limit for parenting, even when the woman has no biological involvement in the pregnancy. Women who are near or beyond menopause are at an increased risk of complications from childbirth, NPR reports. Elizabeth Ginsburg, medical director of the assisted reproductive technology program at Brigham and Women's Hospital, says that each case must be decided based on its individual factors, while Robert Stillman, a physician at Shady Grove Fertility Reproductive Science Center, says that deciding on a case-by-case basis could introduce bias among couples. The segment also includes comments from a woman who had two pregnancies in her 50s through in vitro fertilization (Norris, "All Things Considered," NPR, 7/29). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

"Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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