89.11NP New Policy—For Information: Reproductive Technology
Policy #1 NCWC supports the concept that the New Reproductive Technology is morally acceptable within limits that safeguard the interest of the child, the donor(s), the societal parents and the doctor.
Policy #2 The Government of Canada should establish a national council on bioethics for ongoing study and evaluation of advances in biotechnology in order to:
a) Advise the Government of Canada and provincial governments on matters which should be the subject of legislation; and,
b) Develop national standards and guidelines for researchers and practitioners involved in the biotechnology.
Policy #3 Such a national council on bioethics as mentioned in Policy #2 should be made up of:
a) Medical personnel with research experience;
b) Individuals from many disciplines including law, philosophy, religion, nursing, education;
c) Women to represent at least 50 percent of the makeup of the council;
d) Lay representation over and above that included in (b).
Policy #4 In every institution where human research is undertaken, there should be an institutional ethics committee to approve and monitor research projects, taking into consideration as to whether the project complies with established ethical guidelines to protect the wellbeing of the research subject.
Policy #5 Bioethic guidelines in the research and application of NRT should include counselling of the clients (patients and research subjects). This counselling should include but not be restricted to:
a) An explanation of the procedures involved;
b) An explanation of the risks associated with the procedures;
c) An explanation of the experimental aspects of the procedures;
d) An explanation of the odds for success;
e) An explanation of the legal implications;
f) Emotional counselling;
g) Counselling in respect to the possible psychological, emotional and/or genetic problems which might have to be faced later by the child/adult.
Policy #6 The donors of gametes (eggs and sperm) that are used for artificial insemination or for IVF should be screened to exclude, as far as possible, hereditary diseases and infections that could be passed either to the child or to the mother (usually as sexually transmitted diseases or hepatitis B) and to identify the donor’s rhesus factor.
Policy #7 In order to reduce the chances of those born of donor gamete(s) of marrying a sibling as an adult, there should be a limit to the number of times that a donor contributes to a successful birth, and DNA labelling should be used.
Policy #8 Clients of NRT programs should meet the criteria for eligibility to adopt a child under the current laws.
Policy #9 Cloning of human embryos should be prohibited by legislation.
Policy #10 The use of trans-species fertilization involving human gametes (eggs and sperm) should be a criminal offence.
Policy #11 The placing of a human embryo in the uterus of another species for gestation should be a criminal offence.
Policy #12 The use of fetal tissues in transplants could be allowed under strict federal guidelines.
Policy #13 NCWC is in favour of legislation to control surrogacy, but the nature and extent of the controls requires further study.
Policy #14 The federal and provincial governments should enact legislation to prohibit and/or control within their respective jurisdictions the activities of any company or individual that would commercialize the use of the new reproductive technology.
Policy #15 Provincial and territorial governments should enact legislation to protect the legal status of children born as the result of NRT.
Policy #16 The provincial and territorial governments should adopt birth registration procedures for children born of NRT that would ensure the integrity of birth records through maintaining a record of both the biological and societal parents of the child.
Policy #17 The provincial and territorial governments should enact legislation and maintain the necessary records to enable a child/adult born of NRT to determine his/her biological origins at a time and under conditions established by provincial or territorial guidelines; the legislation to include the stipulation that no legal claims would exist between the child/adult and the donor.