California's pay-for-eggs bill is now
officially on Gov. Jerry Brown's desk, awaiting his signature or
veto.
The measure, AB926 by Assemblywoman
Susan Bonilla, D-Concord, was sent to the governor at 4:45 p.m. PDT
yesterday. On July 1, it easily won legislative approval and
has been held in legislative processing since then. The governor has
12 days to act on the measure or it becomes law without his
signature.
The legislation would remove the state
ban on payment to women for their eggs for scientific purposes.
Currently women who provide their eggs for fertility purposes can be
compensated. Fees run as high as $50,000 in some cases, depending on
the characteristics of the woman providing the eggs, but generally
are in the $10,000 range or less. The bill does not affect the ban on
the use of funds from the California stem cell agency to compensate
egg providers.
Bonilla's bill is sponsored by the $5
billion-a-year fertility industry, which is backing it on motherhood
and sexual equity grounds. Supporters say women should receive
payment for their eggs just as men are paid for their sperm. They
also argue that more eggs are needed for research into fertility
problems. In the stem cell field, scientists have also said it is
nearly impossible to find women who will provide eggs unless they are
paid.
Opponents contend that the process of
stimulating production of eggs can be risky or dangerous. They say
that the longterm effects of the process have not been studied well.
They also argue that it will lead to exploitation of low income and
minority women to produce eggs that then can become a profitable
commodity for the largely unregulated fertility industry. (For more
informationon on the bill, see
here,
here and
here.)
The industry group says, however, that Brown is
committed to signing the bill.
The measure surfaced in the news
yesterday
in an article on the
Forbes magazine website by
Jon Entine.
He wrote,
“Should activist groups, working
through legislators, exercise their control over women’s
reproduction? Do we really 'own' our own bodies? Or does that tenet
only hold when nanny groups say it’s okay?”
“Well, if (when?) AB 926 is signed, I
think our committee should meet to consider what recommendations we
would make to the (the department) as a result of the bill. Those
recommendations could lead, if the committee and the department
agree, to a revision of the state guidelines. As a matter of
law, a statute, particularly a subsequent statute, trumps a guideline
where they are in conflict, but basically I expect we'll see what the
committee thinks and what the department decides. I don't wish
to guess at the results of either process.”
Source:
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/uqpFc/~3/sZ_beYvQCX8/pay-for-eggs-legislation-now-before.html