I live near Detroit, MI and recently there was a major news story in the area about a woman who was implanted with another couple's frozen embryo at a fertility clinic. You can read a short story about it here, if you want to know more just poke around google news and I'm sure you'll find it. It was national news in the US for awhile.
The Associated Press: Ohio woman with wrong embryo gives birth
It got me thinking though, the woman who carried the baby chose to carry it to term and give it to the biological parents. But what if she hadn't? One of the things mentioned was that due to complications with this pregnancy, the clinic would be unable to implant her with any more embryos, so she won't be able to have any more children of her own. What if she decided she wanted to keep this one?
So that leads me to my question. Who do you think a baby belongs to? Is it the couple who donated the sperm and egg? Or the woman who carries it to term? I realize that it's not uncommon for surrogate mothers to carry another couple's child, but the big difference is that they know they're going to be doing it and work out a contract in advance. In a case like this where it's a mistake, who should get to make the decision. Should the woman carrying the child be able to keep the child if she wants to? If she decides she doesn't want to carry another woman's child to term should she be allowed to have an abortion (I'm not trying to start another abortion debate here. Abortion is legal in Ohio, but should it apply if you're carrying someone else's embryo).
29-09-09, 06:28 PM
