New law first in nation to govern embryo adoptions

July 2, 11:12 AMMinneapolis Adoptive Families ExaminerJill Oliveira

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A new law goes into effect this week which will provide some legal clarity in cases of embryo adoption.

Georgia's “Option of Adoption Act,” is the first such law in the nation. In this type of adoption, a couple adopts one or more embryos from another couple who has undergone in-vitro fertilization. The law protects all parties involved.

Until now, embryo adoptions have typically come under property laws. This new law not only addresses specific embryo adoption issues, but allows the adoptive parents the ability to recover some of their expenses with the federal adoption tax credit.

In an interview with the Baptist Press, Ron Stoddart, executive director of Nightlight Christian Adoptions, said there needs to be legal certainty, “before an embryo is thawed and implanted in the womb of an adopting mother.”

"Science has outpaced our legislation in clarifying the rights of the parties in potential disputes involving embryo transfer between families," Stoddart said.

The new law defines an embryo as "an individualized fertilized ovum of the human species from the single-cell stage to eight-week development." Georgia Right to Life president Dan Becker says the law the law defines an embryo is significant.

"We became the first state in the nation to, in our code, define an embryo as beginning at the single stage,” Becker said.