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full screen Alabama Supreme Court in the state capital Montgomery. Photo: Kim Chandler/AP/TT
Can healthcare professionals be prosecuted for causing the death of another if a frozen embryo is destroyed?
Yes, says the Alabama Supreme Court, which ruled that frozen embryos are legally children. The decision causes hospitals to put IVF treatments on hold.
The state’s largest hospital facility, The University of Alabama at Birmingham health system, says it needs to evaluate whether patients and doctors risk criminal charges and penalties if they participate in test-tube treatments.
“We are sorry that this affects our patients’ attempts to have children through IVF,” said a statement from the hospital, which was reported by the AP news agency.
Other care providers are expected to make similar decisions.
Dropped containers
The background is a recent decision by Alabama’s conservative Supreme Court, which ruled that embryos should be defined as children, regardless of whether they are in the womb or outside. The issue has been driven by, among other things, a parental couple whose leftover embryos were kept frozen in a clinic. The container had been accidentally picked up and dropped, which, according to the court, is tantamount to killing a child.
Put simply, the court’s decision means that if something goes wrong with a frozen embryo, whoever handled it can be charged with causing a death.
The ruling cites the state constitution which establishes “the rights of the unborn child”. Chief Justice Tom Parker also refers to biblical words that “all people are God’s image, even before birth”, and that their lives must not be destroyed, according to the media.
Important election issue
The court’s ruling has parallels with Alabama’s very strict abortion laws. Since last summer, abortion has been banned there, exceptions can only be made in certain cases if the life of the mother or fetus is in danger.
In the summer of 2022, the Supreme Court in Washington DC overturned the Roe v. Wade ruling from 1973, the decision that guaranteed the right to abortion nationally in the United States. Abortion is predicted to be an important issue in the election campaign ahead of the fall presidential election.
FACTS Abortion in the United States
The most famous court decision on abortion in the United States is Roe v. Wade, a court case from 1973. In it, the Supreme Court upheld a woman’s right to an abortion with reference to the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which deals with the constitutionally protected right to privacy.
Roe v. Wade allowed abortion until the fetus showed viability, which was then described as between weeks 24 and 28.
The sentence was lifted by the Supreme Court on 24 June 2022.
Now it is up to the states to decide on abortion rights. In recent years, several states have passed abortion bans or very strict abortion laws.
The issue is politicized and debated intensively. Those who oppose abortion are often conservative and/or religious Republicans. Among Democrats, it is more common to defend the right to abortion.
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