Assisted Reproductive Technologies Treatments do Not Need More Government Oversight

Several times questions were raised whether the field of assisted reproductive technologies should be subjected to government oversight. This was the case after a woman from LA gave birth to 8 babies after an IVF treatment, and there are cases when the embryos have been stolen or transferred into the wrong patients. There are many other practical cases and they are all a reason to raise this important questions: do fertility clinics and fertility treatment overall need more government oversight. Only last year, one major professional group of infertility specialists brought up a problem: that the field of reproductive medicine is largely self- governed, and often relies on the voluntary participation of doctors.

The group of fertility specialists believes that there could be a greater degree of regulation. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine then a workshop in December in Washington, D.C., to seek input on oversight from government agencies, patients, physicians, academic experts and others, and the decision on further oversight was stunning. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine claims there are no further oversight needed to prevent the "Octomom" cases (a woman from LA gave birth to 8 babies after an IVF treatment) or cases that may appear as ethically and medically questionable incidents. The report concludes that better insurance coverage of assisted reproductive technologies would greatly reduce inappropriate uses of the technology. Insurance providers could then enact rules that limit the number of embryos transferred and select which reputable doctors and centers would be allowed to perform specific treatments.

Representatives from The American Society for Reproductive Medicine says that if everyone had infertility treatment insurance coverage, patients would be less tempted to transfer a high number of embryos or to use dangerous fertility drugs. They also believe that no further government oversight is necessary at this time. Practitioners who are involved in assisted reproductive technologies treatments must abide federal, FDA rules and professional self-regulation and physician board certification rules which makes the field one of the most highly regulated of all medical practices in the United States.