Legal issues of biomedical assisted reproduction: Reproductive tourism

Abstract

National laws represent a combination of customary and ethical, but also political and other opinions in a society. Particularly delicate, are the laws regulating the issue of assisted reproduction. In this area, broad social acceptance of legal solutions is an essential prerequisite for their use, while achieving the consent of the majority, especially the consensus is extremely difficult, almost impossible. As much as the laws seek to implement those views that are predominant, the adopted solutions will always remain incapable of granting wishes to a certain number of people. These persons, in an understandable effort to realize their desire for an offspring at any cost, will not hold back from seeking help at any place, even if it meant going to distant destinations and extracting large sums of money. In fact, many patients go to other countries which set less restrictive rules in the field of assisted reproduction, and it appears that in the near future we could not expect a reduction of this trend. This phenomenon, which is in theory called reproductive tourism, has long been a reality that one can see as a problem, while others view it as an irreplaceable solution. This paper seeks to highlight the main causes of this phenomenon, but also to try and give an answer as to, whether reproductive tourism should be prevented (and how) or actually its maintenance in force reduces moral conflict in society through a mechanism that recognizes the right of everyone to a considerable extent of free will in decision making regarding the most significant issues which offspring certainly is.