What is the Law on Access to Donor Insemination for Unmarried Women?
Answered by Kathryn Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights. Aug. 30, 2001
What is the law on access to donor insemination for unmarried women?
Q: Dear Kate,
What is the status of the law on access to donor insemination services for unmarried women? How do the laws in the United States compare to those in Canada and Europe?
Melanie
A: Dear Melanie,
In the United States, there are no laws prohibiting single women from using donor insemination services. In practice, however, many insurance companies refuse to pay for insemination services for unmarried women and legal challenges to these restrictions are difficult.
Similarly, although no Canadian laws restrict access to donor insemination for single women, until recently many Canadian practitioners and clinics refused to provide insemination services to lesbians or unmarried women. A 1992 Canadian Royal Commission Report found that 72 percent of practitioners surveyed said they would refuse donor insemination to a woman in a stable lesbian relationship. This situation improved in 1996 when a decision from the British Columbia Supreme Court held that a doctor's refusal to provide insemination services to lesbians constituted unlawful discrimination based on sexual orientation.
In Europe, the picture is mixed. Although many European countries have gone beyond the United States in recognizing same-sex relationships, recognition of parental rights has been slower. For example, although Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Switzerland, Germany and France recognize registered partners, lesbians are denied access to donor insemination in these countries.
In contrast, donor insemination is available to single women in Belgium, Finland, Greece, Spain, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, which this year became the first country in the world to recognize same-sex marriages. More information about the status of LGBT rights around the world can be found at the International Lesbian and Gay Association website.
Sincerely,
Kathryn Kendell
Kendell is executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights.
Aug. 30, 2001