Multnomah "Donor" Sues re Wrongful Conception
Note: The views espoused in this editorial are not that of the blogger and being provided for the reader's information.
Editorial
Albany Democrat-Herald
09/27/2006
Run this man out of court
In Portland, we are seeing another chapter in the long story of how technology has made a commodity out of human life, especially babies, a commodity to be created or discarded at will, and a thing to be argued over in court.As reported in the papers last week, a man went to court in Multnomah County. He had deposited some of his sperm at Oregon Health & Science
University so that it could be implanted in his girlfriend. Instead, the fertility clinic made a mistake and implanted the sperm in another woman, who had sought to be impregnated by an anonymous donor so she and her husband could have a baby.
The donor is suing because he wants to know if his sperm helped make a baby. The couple is suing back in order to be left alone.
According to the story, the hospital made an attempt to make sure the woman did not become pregnant, even offering her an abortion if she did. It’s not known whether a child resulted, but the implication is that yes, one did.
Where to begin to count the wrongs in this story?Why would the medical school hospital agree to impregnate the girlfriend of some donor?
Why doesn’t it insist that they be married first? What if the “relationship” doesn’t last and there’s yet another child with just one parent in the home?
If there’s a mistake in a fertility deal, the hospital offers to do an abortion? And people made fun of President Bush for worrying about human embryos being treated like so much unwanted trash.
Then the sperm donor goes to court to invade the privacy of the unfortunate couple caught up in this mess through absolutely no fault of their own. Suppose they did get pregnant and now have a baby. What right does this guy have to interfere in the lives of parents and child?
If the Oregon courts don’t throw this man out on his ear by dismissing his suit without further ado, there’s something wrong not just with the hospital but with the courts as well. (hh)
Editorial
Albany Democrat-Herald
09/27/2006
Run this man out of court
In Portland, we are seeing another chapter in the long story of how technology has made a commodity out of human life, especially babies, a commodity to be created or discarded at will, and a thing to be argued over in court.As reported in the papers last week, a man went to court in Multnomah County. He had deposited some of his sperm at Oregon Health & Science
University so that it could be implanted in his girlfriend. Instead, the fertility clinic made a mistake and implanted the sperm in another woman, who had sought to be impregnated by an anonymous donor so she and her husband could have a baby.
The donor is suing because he wants to know if his sperm helped make a baby. The couple is suing back in order to be left alone.
According to the story, the hospital made an attempt to make sure the woman did not become pregnant, even offering her an abortion if she did. It’s not known whether a child resulted, but the implication is that yes, one did.
Where to begin to count the wrongs in this story?Why would the medical school hospital agree to impregnate the girlfriend of some donor?
Why doesn’t it insist that they be married first? What if the “relationship” doesn’t last and there’s yet another child with just one parent in the home?
If there’s a mistake in a fertility deal, the hospital offers to do an abortion? And people made fun of President Bush for worrying about human embryos being treated like so much unwanted trash.
Then the sperm donor goes to court to invade the privacy of the unfortunate couple caught up in this mess through absolutely no fault of their own. Suppose they did get pregnant and now have a baby. What right does this guy have to interfere in the lives of parents and child?
If the Oregon courts don’t throw this man out on his ear by dismissing his suit without further ado, there’s something wrong not just with the hospital but with the courts as well. (hh)
posted by DI_Dad at 6:59 PM
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