No, it’s not a headline we use all that often (as opposed to, say, “New charges for Espada”): Assemblywoman Deborah Glick, apparently responding to a much-read recent NYT story about a sperm donor with at least 150 progeny, plans to introduce a bill setting limits on the the number of children conceived from a single donor.
The as-yet-unwritten legislation — which Glick says will be introduced for the 2012 session — would establish “a required registry at each sperm bank that provides a means for gathering accurate information on that number. In addition, the accurate and detailed health information for each donor must be available to IVF children.”
“While the best possible solution would be federal controls that prevent circumventing state by state laws, we cannot wait to address the obvious problem that has developed. For some years we have heard of young people seeking out their half siblings and a growing number of web based registries and search groups. There needs to be a standard of behavior for all sperm banks,” Glick said in a statement.
“I intend to work with all of the stakeholders in this arena to ensure that we take into account all the concerns that people may have and to handle them with the sensitivity this subject demands,” Glick concluded.
A Manhattan Democrat, Glick became the first openly gay member of the state Legislature when she took office in 1990.
http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/80795/glick-plans-sperm-bank-regulation-bill/
