Dear Friends,
It is just one week until the end of the HFEA's consultation on its plans to introduce substantial 'compensation' payments for egg donation. I attach HGA's briefing on the issue, our press release is below. If you agree with us that the HFEA's plans are unethical, and will lead to the 'eggsploitation' of young women, please visit their website (the consultation is only online) and let them know your views http://www.hfea.gov.uk/5605.html
Best wishes
Dr David King
Director, Human Genetics Alert
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No to Eggsploitation!
MEDIA RELEASE
Human Genetics Alert
5 April 2011
Human Genetics Alert (1) today published a briefing on the HFEA's plans to increase compensation payments for egg donors. The briefing shows how such payments always lead to 'eggsploitation', in which financially-stressed young women are induced to take serious health risks. The current cuts in welfare and increases in student debt will undoubtedly force more young women into taking these risks. The HFEA's plans violate the international consensus against commercialisation of parts of the human body.
Our analysis of HFEA internal documents shows that:
*the HFEA systematically understates risks to donors
*the only group which supports these plans is the IVF industry
*the HFEA and admits that there is little evidence that increased compensation will boost the number of altruistic donors donors, the public and, most importantly, donor-conceived people are opposed to the plans.
We criticise the HFEA's biased treatment of this issue, which began in 2009 with Lisa Jardine's announcement that she 'personally' supports outright payment for eggs, which is in fact illegal (2). Throughout the process, the HFEA has marginalised the key ethical and social issue, ie. the exploitation of poor women, which has been central in all previous policy discussions. We argue that the real aim of the whole exercise has been to reclaim the business that British IVF clinics are losing abroad.
HGA's Director, Dr David King, said: "The HFEA is playing with the health of young women. Free-market doctrine and IVF industry business interests must not be allowed to violate crucial ethical rules."
Notes for editors
1. Human Genetics Alert is an independent secular watchdog group that supports abortion rights.
2.http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article6728391.ece. The HFEA was forced to apologise for Jardine's statement. Direct payment for eggs is banned under the EU Tissues and Cells Directive ( 2004/23/EC). The HFEA is trying to exploit a loophole in the Directive, which allows compensation payments for donors' inconvenience.