Insemination rules draw fire
04/08/2011
Submitted by
ILGA-Europe
Original article: http://sverigesradio.se/sida/arti...x?programid=2054&artikel=4630466
"We're going to try to have one child each," says Carolina Hemlin. But in Stockholm, where she and her girlfriend live, as well as many other regions in Sweden, this is not allowed.
Hemlin and her girlfriend have been waiting in the queue for about a year to get artificial insemination treatments and start their family. Hemlin is due to undergo the procedure in the fall.
They discussed many options for having children, from going abroad to having children with friends who are gay, but in the end, they decided to go through the Swedish health care system, because she says "it felt safe" and it made sense economically.
Lesbian and bisexual couples in Sweden have had the right to artificial insemination in clinics since 2005. But how this is actually put in practice varies widely throughout the country, and some are complaining that there is still a long way towards equal rights and towards laws that make sense for homosexual couples.
In some parts of the country, same-sex couples have to pay for insemination, while heterosexual couples do not. Meanwhile, in Stockholm and other places, for example, only one woman in the pair can be inseminated. In other words, Hemlin will only ever be able to bear children for the couple, so long as the rules stay as they are.
One of the reasons the couple decided that Hemlin, and not her girlfriend, would undergo the procedure was age. All of Sweden's regions have an upper age limit (these differ) after which one is no longer eligible for the service. Therefore, since only one woman can try to get pregnant with these methods, age is an important factor couples consider when choosing who will try to bear the child.
Sweden's various regions have a certain amount of sovereignty when it comes to making their health care regulations. However, Hemlin argues that all the rules should be the same across the country, so no one gets discriminated against. She says she emailed the Stockholm municipality and they told her they are looking into the possibility of changing the rules to allow for same sex couples to both be pregnant.
Peter Taj Christensen, a development officer with the Equality Ombudsman, says that he considers some of the rules to be discriminatory, but that they have lost the court cases over them, because of what he calls a predominant heteronormative logic.
"I think it's the obligation of the medical services and the health care to do as much as they can to cure involuntary childlessness," says Christensen. "If that means inseminating both women, I think that's what should be done."
Christensen believes it is a reasonable measure even though, when compared to the situation for a heterosexual couple, it would be impossible to inseminate both people. He does not agree with making this comparison.
"That's a heteronormative logic to me, because it is possible to inseminate on both women in a same sex couple, and if it can give the couple a child which they want, then that's what should be done I think," he says.
Throughout Sweden, single women, regardless of sexual orientation, are not eligible for artificial insemination, making Denmark a popular choice for the procedure.
"We're going to try to have one child each," says Carolina Hemlin. But in Stockholm, where she and her girlfriend live, as well as many other regions in Sweden, this is not allowed.
Hemlin and her girlfriend have been waiting in the queue for about a year to get artificial insemination treatments and start their family. Hemlin is due to undergo the procedure in the fall.
They discussed many options for having children, from going abroad to having children with friends who are gay, but in the end, they decided to go through the Swedish health care system, because she says "it felt safe" and it made sense economically.
Lesbian and bisexual couples in Sweden have had the right to artificial insemination in clinics since 2005. But how this is actually put in practice varies widely throughout the country, and some are complaining that there is still a long way towards equal rights and towards laws that make sense for homosexual couples.
In some parts of the country, same-sex couples have to pay for insemination, while heterosexual couples do not. Meanwhile, in Stockholm and other places, for example, only one woman in the pair can be inseminated. In other words, Hemlin will only ever be able to bear children for the couple, so long as the rules stay as they are.
One of the reasons the couple decided that Hemlin, and not her girlfriend, would undergo the procedure was age. All of Sweden's regions have an upper age limit (these differ) after which one is no longer eligible for the service. Therefore, since only one woman can try to get pregnant with these methods, age is an important factor couples consider when choosing who will try to bear the child.
Sweden's various regions have a certain amount of sovereignty when it comes to making their health care regulations. However, Hemlin argues that all the rules should be the same across the country, so no one gets discriminated against. She says she emailed the Stockholm municipality and they told her they are looking into the possibility of changing the rules to allow for same sex couples to both be pregnant.
Peter Taj Christensen, a development officer with the Equality Ombudsman, says that he considers some of the rules to be discriminatory, but that they have lost the court cases over them, because of what he calls a predominant heteronormative logic.
"I think it's the obligation of the medical services and the health care to do as much as they can to cure involuntary childlessness," says Christensen. "If that means inseminating both women, I think that's what should be done."
Christensen believes it is a reasonable measure even though, when compared to the situation for a heterosexual couple, it would be impossible to inseminate both people. He does not agree with making this comparison.
"That's a heteronormative logic to me, because it is possible to inseminate on both women in a same sex couple, and if it can give the couple a child which they want, then that's what should be done I think," he says.
Throughout Sweden, single women, regardless of sexual orientation, are not eligible for artificial insemination, making Denmark a popular choice for the procedure.
