A new law to be introduced this week in Australian Parliament will establish a sperm donor registry and allow sperm donor conceived children, at age 18, to know who their biological father is. About 37,000 children have been born in Australia through sperm donation, but to date, children have not been given the right to know who their daddy is. Largely because sperm donors wanted protection “from claims on their assets“.
“Spokeswoman Leonie Hewitt, whose donor-conceived child has 29 half-siblings, said the possibility of a person inadvertently forming a sexual relationship with such a sibling was a major concern.
A register would enable donor-conceived people to access their medical history, and perhaps find their families.”
Author Profile
- Jennifer Lahl, MA, BSN, RN, is founder and president of The Center for Bioethics and Culture Network. Lahl couples her 25 years of experience as a pediatric critical care nurse, a hospital administrator, and a senior-level nursing manager with a deep passion to speak for those who have no voice. Lahl’s writings have appeared in various publications including Cambridge University Press, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Dallas Morning News, and the American Journal of Bioethics. As a field expert, she is routinely interviewed on radio and television including ABC, CBS, PBS, and NPR. She is also called upon to speak alongside lawmakers and members of the scientific community, even being invited to speak to members of the European Parliament in Brussels to address issues of egg trafficking; she has three times addressed the United Nations during the Commission on the Status of Women on egg and womb trafficking.
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