Paris (AFP)
"We will not completely destroy the gamete stock": the Minister of Health Agnès Buzyn on Monday deemed necessary the establishment of a transition period before the transition to a new system of donations to avoid a shortage.
"The gamete stock will continue to be used until we establish another gamete stock that will meet the new requirements, that is, the donor has given consent to be contacted again by the young person. 18 years old, "said the minister on France Inter.
The bioethics bill, which includes the opening of the PMA to all women, will be discussed in the National Assembly in September. The special commission set up to examine the text will begin its hearings on Monday.
The bill also provides that children born of a donation after the coming into force of the law may have access to their "non-identifying data" (age, physical characteristics, etc.) of the donor and to his or her identity. .
For this, the agreement of the donor is necessary. Consequence: from now on, to give his sperm, a man must obligatorily accept that his identity can one day be revealed to the child born of this gift, if it wishes it. If this man does not accept it, he will not be able to give.
However, the gift itself will remain anonymous: we will still not be able to choose a donor and a donor will not be able to choose who he is giving to.
According to the Ministry of Health, there are about 150,000 LDC attempts a year, with third-party donors or not (most heterosexual couples make LDCs with their own gametes).
These attempts give rise to 25,000 births each year (out of a total of 800,000), of which about a thousand are from a third donor.
"There will be by decree a pivotal date to which we will decide to change the system", explained the minister specifying that before this date, there will be no lift of anonymity.
"We are not going to destroy the gamete stock overnight, especially since we have not yet replenished a new stock," she added.
© 2019 AFP