The FDA’s recent action against genetic testing company 23andMe has raised many legal and ethical questions about the role of regulation in genetic testing. But while many are focused on this debate, the role of regulation in the sperm industry goes unnoticed.
In the United States, there is no government agency or regulatory body to track how many sperm donors there are, how often they donate, or how many children are born from the donations. “The American Society for Reproductive Medicine recommends genetic screening of sperm donors, and many banks do it, but the government does not require it,” writes the New York Times’ Rene Almeling. “The risks become magnified the greater the number of children conceived from each donor.”
“How did we get to this point? Sperm donation has evolved from a practice of customized production to an industry that resembles mass manufacturing.”
Read the full, original story here: The Unregulated Sperm Industry
Additional Resources:
- “The ‘chaos’ sired by sperm donation,” Center for Bioethics and Culture
- “Glowing sperm go head to head in fight to be the daddy,” New Scientist
- “Test-tube baby boom: 5 million births and climbing,” USA Today
