IVF, same-sex couples and the value of biological ties
Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
Ought parents, in general, to value being biologically tied to their children? Is it important, in particular, that both parents be biologically tied to their children? I will address these fundamental questions by looking at a fairly new practice within IVF treatments, so-called IVF-with-ROPA (Reception of Oocytes from Partner), which allows lesbian couples to 'share motherhood', with one partner providing the eggs while the other becomes pregnant. I believe that IVF-with-ROPA is, just like other IVF treatments, morally permissible, but here I argue that the increased biological ties which IVF-with-ROPA allows for do not have any particular value beside the satisfaction of a legitimate wish, because there is no intrinsic value in a biological tie between parents and children; further, I argue that equality within parental projects cannot be achieved by redistributing biological ties.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Journal | Journal of Medical Ethics |
Volume | 42 |
Issue number | 12 |
Pages (from-to) | 784-787 |
Number of pages | 4 |
ISSN | 0306-6800 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Dec 2016 |
ID: 166195197