Survey on ART and IUI: legislation, regulation, funding, and registries in European countries-an update.
(2024) Human reproduction — Vol. 39, n° 9, p. 1909-1924 (2024)
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- Authors
Calhaz-Jorge, Carlos 
Goossens, Veerle
- Abstract
- STUDY QUESTION: How are ART and IUI regulated, funded, and registered in European countries, and how has the situation changed since 2018? SUMMARY ANSWER: Of the 43 countries performing ART and IUI in Europe, and participating in the survey, specific legislation exists in only 39 countries, public funding varies across and sometimes within countries (and is lacking or minimal in four countries), and national registries are in place in 33 countries; only a small number of changes were identified, most of them in the direction of improving accessibility, through increased public financial support and/or opening access to additional subgroups. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY: The annual reports of the European IVF-Monitoring Consortium (EIM) clearly show the existence of different approaches across Europe regarding accessibility to and efficacy of ART and IUI treatments. In a previous survey, some coherent information was gathered about how those techniques were regulated, funded, and registered in European countries, showing that diversity is the paradigm in this medical field. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION: A survey was designed using the SurveyMonkey tool consisting of 90 questions covering several domains (legal, funding, and registry) and considering specific details on the situation of third-party donations. New questions widened the scope of the previous survey. Answers refer to the situation of countries on 31 December 2022. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTINGS, METHODS: All members of the EIM were invited to participate. The received answers were checked and initial responders were asked to address unclear answers and to provide any additional information considered relevant. Tables resulting from the consolidated data were then sent to members of the Committee of National Representatives of ESHRE, requesting a second check. Conflicting information was clarified by direct contact. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE: Information was received from 43 out of the 45 European countries where ART and IUI are performed. There were 39 countries with specific legislation on ART, and artificial insemination was considered an ART technique in 33 of them. Accessibility is limited to infertile couples only in 8 of the 43 countries. In 5 countries, ART and IUI are permitted also for treatments of single women and all same sex couples, while a total of 33 offer treatment to single women and 19 offer treatment to female couples. […]
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Citations
Calhaz-Jorge, C., Smeenk, J., Wyns, C., De Neubourg, D., Baldani, D. P., Bergh, C., Cuevas-Saiz, I., De Geyter, C., Kupka, M. S., Rezabek, K., Tandler-Schneider, A., & Goossens, V. (2024). Survey on ART and IUI: legislation, regulation, funding, and registries in European countries-an update. Human reproduction, 39(9), 1909-1924. https://doi.org/10.1093/humrep/deae163 (Original work published 2024)