Bill Text: NJ A1383 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Regulates use of human embryos fertilized in vitro.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-01-12 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Health and Senior Services Committee [A1383 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-A1383-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
214th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2010 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman MICHAEL PATRICK CARROLL
District 25 (Morris)
SYNOPSIS
Regulates use of human embryos fertilized in vitro.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act concerning the use of human embryos and supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in this act, "human embryo" means a fertilized human ovum at any stage of its development.
2. a. No person shall cause to be fertilized a human ovum outside the body of a woman unless it is that person's intention to implant that human ovum in a woman's body. A fertilized human ovum, human embryo or other developing human shall not be employed for any purpose other than implantation in the body of a married woman in order to bring the child to life.
b. No person shall cause to be fertilized more human ova than that person reasonably believes will be implanted in any single attempt to produce a viable pregnancy.
3. No person shall deliberately destroy a human embryo under any circumstances. In the event of a dispute between the natural parents of a human embryo, a court of competent jurisdiction shall accord controlling weight to the interest of the human embryo life, and shall award custody of the human embryo to the parent who intends to bring the human embryo to term.
4. a. In the event:
(1) of the death of both natural parents prior to the time at which all human embryos have been implanted and brought to term; or
(2) of the death of a natural parent prior to the time at which all human embryos have been implanted and brought to term, when the surviving natural parent no longer desires to seek to have existing human embryos implanted; or
(3) that both natural parents no longer desire to seek to have existing human embryos implanted;
those human embryos shall become wards of the State, which shall use its best efforts to locate a married couple interested in bringing them to term.
b. A human embryo which has not been implanted two years from the date of its creation shall be presumed to be no longer desired by the parents and shall become a ward of the State, which shall use its best efforts to locate a married couple interested in bringing the human embryo to term.
c. The parents or the parents' designated representative shall be notified of the intention to make a human embryo a ward of the State pursuant to the provisions of subsection a. or b. of this section. If the parents or the parents' designated representative objects thereto, the parents or the parents' designated representative shall show cause before a court of competent jurisdiction why the human embryo should not become a ward of the State, in which case the burden of proof shall be upon the parents or the parents' designated representative to demonstrate, by clear and convincing evidence, why the court should not declare the human embryo a ward of the State. The court shall render such decision as shall maximize the chance for the human embryo to be brought to term.
5. It shall be the policy of this State to take all actions as are necessary to maximize the chances that any human embryo created shall be brought to term by a married couple.
6. No person shall sell, offer for sale, or transfer or receive for valuable consideration a human embryo.
7. No in vitro fertilized human ovum shall be farmed or cultured solely for research purposes.
8. a. A person or entity who violates the provisions of this act shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $1,000 and not more than $10,000 for each such incident. In addition, a health care professional licensed pursuant to Title 45 of the Revised Statutes who knowingly violates the provisions of this act shall be subject to immediate revocation of that individual's professional license by the appropriate licensing board.
b. The Commissioner of Health and Senior Services shall enforce the provisions of this act and may make complaints against persons violating its provisions or the rules or regulations issued thereunder and prosecute violations of same.
9. The Commissioner of Health and Senior Services, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), shall adopt rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this act.
10. This act shall take effect on the 180th day after enactment, but the Commissioner of Health and Senior Services may take such anticipatory administrative action in advance as shall be necessary for the implementation of the act.
STATEMENT
It has been said that technology has outpaced morality. In no place is this more evident than the sphere of human reproduction. All too often, it seems that procedures are developed and undertaken simply because they can be, without fully considering whether they should be. In attempting to meet the needs of couples desperate to become parents, science -- and the law -- sometimes ignore the very real moral questions relating to the status of the children who are created in the attempt.
Law represents society's collective morality. It is altogether fitting and proper that the Legislature impose reasonable regulations on medical practices in order to ensure that the focus of same be upon the life of the child created. As human beings, they must be treated with the basic human dignity and respect to which all human creatures are entitled. It must be emphasized that human beings are not property, and are not proper subjects for either research or sale.
This bill would, first and foremost, attempt to preclude the possibility of later difficulties by restricting the number of embryos which can be created. At present, it is prevalent practice to create many more embryos than are actually intended to be implanted at any one time. While this provides insurance against the possibility that implantation will not occur on the first attempt, it inevitably results in the creation of more human embryos than natural parents desire to bring to term.
Recognizing that these embryos are human beings, their interest -- not those of either the clinics or their parents -- must be the paramount legal concern. This bill provides that all actions taken regarding them shall be designed to maximize the possibility that they will be brought to term. This means that in the event that more embryos are created than the parents desire to implant (which should become a moot point with the enactment into law of this bill), or, in the case of existing embryos, should some misfortune befall a parent or should they have a falling out and disagree as to what should be done with the embryos, the party to prevail will be the one intending to bring the children to term. Similarly, if both parents do not desire to bring the children to term, or if the delay in doing so is such that it can reasonably be called into question whether such intention exists, the embryos shall become wards of the State, which shall take such action as is reasonable to maximize the opportunity for the children to be brought to term.
The Legislature, in enacting this bill into law, would not be unmindful that the impact of these restrictions may be to render it somewhat more burdensome for clinics to operate and somewhat more expensive for infertile couples to employ in vitro fertilization techniques; however, the overriding principal -- protection of human life -- compels the State to act in such a manner as to accord the benefit of all doubt to preserving human life, even if such protection inconveniences others. First and foremost, government exists to preserve basic human rights, foremost among which is that of life itself. No other interest should suffice to deflect government from this, its most basic role.
