In Australia, the state Parliament of Victoria voted earlier this month to expand in vitro fertilization (IVF) laws so that single and lesbian women will have legal access to IVF. Previously, single and lesbian women were required to be clinically infertile in order to receive IVF treatment. The legislation also gives parents of children conceived through surrogacy and gay partners of children conceived through IVF parenting rights, according to The Australian.
The legislation includes mandatory criminal background checks for those seeking IVF. This provision has been condemned by several doctors and a judge, according to the Herald Sun.
Rob Hull, Victoria’s Attorney-General, told ABC News that “this legislation was always about kids and ensuring that children born into same sex families or as a result of surrogacy arrangements are not discriminated against.”
