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Fertility treatment delivery during the continued Covid-19 pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic shows little sign of abatement as it continues to cause disruption, loss and death around the world. In light of the intensification of the Covid-19 pandemic and England’s decision to implement a second nationwide lockdown on 5 November 2020 for a month, the HFEA issued updated guidance for the delivery of licensed fertility treatment services on 2 November 2020. However, notwithstanding the welcome continued delivery of fertility treatment services in the UK, the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic creates a wide variety of legal and wider issues for those seeking to undertake fertility treatment and assisted conception that require careful consideration and management.
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The UK’s New National Genomic Healthcare Strategy, Genome UK

On 19 October 2020 BioNews published a comment piece by specialist fertility and family lawyer Louisa Ghevaert which assesses the UK government's new National Genomic Healthcare Strategy, Genome UK. Louisa explains that this genomic healthcare strategy does not go far enough in repositioning future healthcare strategy, policy and practice. By not fully articulating and integrating human reproduction and fertility treatment into future genomic healthcare strategy, Louisa explains that it does not represent a truly cohesive approach in setting our genomic healthcare strategy 'over the next ten years' and beyond.
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Latest trends in family formations through UK fertility treatment

The HFEA published its latest report on 22 September 2020 called “Family formations in fertility treatment 2018”. It gives valuable insight into the creation of modern family forms in the UK and an upbeat pre-pandemic picture of fertility treatment in 2018. However, the ongoing disruption, uncertainty and loss caused by the global Covid-19 pandemic continues to unfold around us and drive unprecedented and rapid levels of change. As such, this evolving picture creates complex issues and challenges in terms of the current and future management and navigation of fertility treatment and healthcare, as well as our ability to create and protect our families in 2020 and into the future.
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Egg Freezing and UK Law Reform

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics published a Briefing Note on Egg Freezing in the UK on 30 September 2020. It concludes that there are few arguments against increasing storage limits for social egg freezing in the UK and it coincides with the government’s ongoing review of gamete and embryo storage law. As such, it provides further impetus for reform of gamete and embryo storage law in the UK and it provides a helpful overview of key policy, social, and ethical issues. It also highlights the fact that the difference in storage limits between medical egg freezing and social egg freezing has been strongly criticised and it raises some important issues that need to be addressed moving forward.
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