HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	130
TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2009
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

urging medical and professional organizations that provide reproductive and fertility treatments to develop ethical standards and professional guidelines for embryo implantation.

     WHEREAS, a single, unemployed mother in California recently gave birth to octuplets after undergoing fertility treatments and being implanted with embryos; and

     WHEREAS, at the time the octuplets were born, the woman already had six young children resulting from six in vitro fertilization treatments between 2001 and 2006, and there is concern whether she will be able to care adequately for all fourteen children ranging from seven years old to the infant octuplets; and

     WHEREAS, there has been public outcry and concern over the ethics of implanting numerous embryos in patients that may not have the resources to care for the children that result from the fertility treatment; and

     WHEREAS, professional and medical organizations that deal with reproductive technology should develop ethical standards for the number of embryos that may be implanted at one time in a fertility treatment patient, while allowing for a consideration of each patient's unique situation; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fifth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2009, the Senate concurring, that medical and professional organizations in Hawaii that provide reproductive and fertility treatments are urged to develop ethical standards and professional guidelines for embryo implantation that address:

(1)  Limitations on the number of embryos that may be implanted in a patient during a single fertility treatment;

(2)  The health and welfare of the children who may result from the success of the fertility treatment and any existing children of the patient;

(3)  The health and welfare of the mother;

(4)  Insurance coverage guidelines relating to embryo implantation; and

(5)  Required consultation with other medical professionals on complex or difficult cases; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Board of Medical Examiners which, in turn, is requested to transmit copies to medical professionals and professional organizations that provide reproductive and fertility treatments, including in vitro fertilization, in the State.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Reproductive Technology; Professional Standards