MCV – “IVF Setbacks” by Rachel Cook
Rachel Cook discusses the delays for accessing IVF to same-sex couples – a delay of up to 5 months.
Delays in police checks will mean that same-sex couples requiring IVF treatment could be waiting five months.
Lesbians and single women gained access to IVF last December when the Assisted Reproductive Treatment Bill was passed. However the bill also introduced police checks as part of the screening process for prospective IVF recipients.
The checks are designed to ensure that people seeking fertility treatment are “fit to parent”, having no history of violence or sexual assault.
As reported in the Herald Sun last week, a doctor from Melbourne IVF has voiced his concerns that the government has failed to ensure the infrastructure is in place to cope with high numbers of police checks.