BERLIN, January 27, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Germany's National Committee of Ethics is calling for "limited use" of tests on IVF embryos to screen for genetic disorders, "so that only healthy ones are implanted," reports stated.
"The majority recommendation limits the test to those cases in which the child is very likely to inherit a condition considered so very serious that it would be included in current rules governing abortions," a spokeswoman for the committee told Reuters Health. The screening would include "those genetic defects which would lead to the fetus dying before birth," she added.
Supporters compare IVF pre-screening to common forms of prenatal diagnosis that give parents the option of aborting babies who may have Down's syndrome, some other disorder, or, in many cases, the wrong sex.