Abstract
Although infertility is recognized as a disease by the World Health Organization, Danish patients suffering from reproductive diseases are not treated equally to patients suffering from other somatic diseases. Access to treatment under the national health plan is limited to three cycles of in vitro fertilization (IVF) and is conditional on a certain age, whether or not any joint children (in fresh cycles) already exist, and parental ability. Access to treatment in the private sector is more liberal; although maternal age can be 45 years as opposed to 40 in the public system, the treatment itself carries almost the same prohibitions and regulations in terms of what is permissible and what is not. Denmark is a hub for cross-border reproductive care for single and lesbian women who do have access to treatment. The use of assisted reproduction is high; with 10–12% of annual births through assisted reproduction, Denmark is home to the world’s largest sperm bank yet prohibits the sale of eggs. Danish regulations are both prohibitive and liberal, and this chapter seeks to understand how these particular regulations were shaped and evolved over time.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | The Regulation of Assisted Reproductive Technologies in Europe : Variation, Convergence and Trends |
Editors | Erich Griessler, Lenka Slepickova, Heleen Weyers, Florian Winkler, Nicole Zeegers |
Number of pages | 21 |
Publisher | Routledge |
Publication date | 2022 |
Chapter | 4 |
ISBN (Print) | 9781032122403 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 9781003223726 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2022 |