In Vitro Fertilization
...ed and its cells properly divide, it is carefully returned to the woman’s body. She is told to lie perfectly still for many hours. Her blood hormone levels are measured for a number of weeks after the egg transfer to see if there has been a successful pregnancy. (journal 7). The couples with the best chances for a successful IVF procedure involve a woman younger than thirty-four who has normal menstrual cycles and a good response to controlled ovarian hyperstimulation and a man with a good semen analysis. In vitro fertilization can bypass most causes of infertility, including irreversibly blocked fallopian tubes, antisperm antibody problems, endometriosis, a cervical factor problem, very low sperm counts, and even unexplained causes of infertility. IVF is particularly a good alternative for a woman who produces mature eggs but can’t conceive naturally because of blocked fallopian tubes, and for a woman with unruptured follicle syndrome, who develops but doesn’t release mature eggs from her follicles (inciid 11). While the government may not easily prohibit access to IVF, it may reasonably regulate IVF to promote the public welfare. To protect future generations from genetic defects, a law may be passed which will require the destruction of eggs developing abnormally. The Department of Health and Human Services, an executive administrative agency, has already issued some regulations which affect all research programs involving humans. There regulations require that the institution involved study potential risks and benefits of research, the rights and personal welfare of proposed subjects, and the need for their informed consent. If an experiment exposes human subjects to possible physical, psychological, or social injury, an independent review committee must find that the risks are outweighed by the benefits to the subject and by the knowledge to be gained. All subjects must give informed consent (journal 8-13). Recognizing that fetal research has saved thousands of lives, the Department of Health and Human Services has approved research involving fetuses less than 20 weeks old where the parents have provided consent, and an ethical advisory/medical institution review board monitors the procedure. Risk to the fetus and pregnant women must be the least possible consistent with the objectives of the research. No money or other inducement may be offered to terminate pregnancy for the purpose of the activity. These rules supplement laws restricting fetal research in some states (journal 12-13). Similarly, IVF research is considered vital and may be conducted with the Department of Health and Human Services involvement as long as embryo transfer is attempted only with married couples upon their informed consent. There are no rules which govern research with un-implanted fertilized eggs. Research with implanted fertilized eggs that cannot survive outside the womb may be conducted to obtain important biological knowledge which cannot be obtained by other means. The federal government through the DHHS may fund IVF programs and provide Medicaid reimbursement for IVF, but only if the safety of the technique is demonstrated and the legal responsibilities of parties are clarified (journal 13). Some people argue against in vitro because they think that it is a way of playing God. But in reality, doctors “play God” everyday (Elrod 1). It is commonly accepted that we create babies in test tubes and take birth control pills to prevent them. There are many benefits to cloning and since not everyone believes in God why sh...