HB 2384 -- Embryo Transfers

Sponsor:  Tracy

This bill establishes the Embryo Transfer Act which authorizes a
legal embryo custodian to relinquish all rights and
responsibilities for an embryo to a recipient intended parent
prior to an embryo transfer.  A legal embryo custodian must have
a written contract with each recipient intended parent prior to
an embryo transfer for the legal transfer of rights to an embryo
and to any child that may result from the transfer.

The contract must include the designation by the recipient
intended parent of an agent who is authorized to act on behalf of
the parent and must be signed by each legal embryo custodian for
the embryo and by each recipient intended parent.  The contract
nullifies any prior written agreement regarding the disposition
of the embryo.  If the embryo was created using donor sperm and
egg, the rights to an embryo created by an in vitro fertilization
clinic will be irrevocably relinquished to an agent of the
clinic.

Prior to relinquishing an embryo, the legal embryo custodian must
establish that the embryo donor has tested negative for all
infectious diseases on the United States Food and Drug
Administration's Complete List of Donor Screening Assays for
Infectious Agents and HIV Diagnosis Assays.  This provision will
not apply to an embryo in existence prior to the effective date
of the bill.

Upon embryo relinquishment by each legal embryo custodian, the
legal transfer of rights to an embryo will be considered
complete, and the embryo transfer will be authorized.  A child
born to a recipient intended parent as the result of embryo
relinquishment will be presumed to be the legal child of the
recipient intended parent if each legal embryo custodian and each
recipient intended parent has entered into a written contract.  A
completed embryo transfer contract will terminate any future
parental rights and responsibilities of any past or present legal
embryo custodian or sperm or egg donor in a child which results
from the embryo transfer and vest the rights and responsibilities
in the recipient intended parent.

Missouri House of Representatives
95th General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated September 14, 2010 at 3:13 pm