The bill titled «Reforms in Medically Assisted Reproduction» is before Parliament»

The legislative framework is being modernized medically assisted reproduction with the bill «Reforms in Medically Assisted Reproduction,» which is expected to be passed today by the Hellenic Parliament. The new framework is adapted to the rapid scientific advances in assisted reproduction and in vitro fertilization, as well as to societal expectations.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is also expected to speak at 12:00 during the debate in Parliament.

Three experts commented on key provisions of the new legislative framework, which corrects past distortions and introduces innovative regulations in the field of assisted reproduction.

Nikolaos Vrachnis, president of the National Authority for Medically Assisted Reproduction, and Konstantinos Pantos, secretary general of the Hellenic Society of Reproductive Medicine, who presented their views on the draft law to the Parliament’s Standing Committee on Social Affairs, express their satisfaction with the reform of the legislative framework.

«The law is intended to help those receiving assistance regain the rights that science has secured,» Mr. Vrachnis told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA-MPA). He adds that the previous legal framework was truly liberal and innovative for its time, however, given current developments in medical science—and especially in reproductive science and embryology—it is now considered outdated, which is why reform was necessary. Mr. Pantos expressed the same view to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA-MPA), emphasizing that many of the current provisions are now anachronistic.

«The previous law was very progressive for its time, and the current one has the same goal, given the latest technological advances in science. There are necessary changes that must be implemented with wisdom and caution, as well as issues that need to be addressed through legislation,» emphasizes Professor Sophia Kalantaridou to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA-MPA), who served as president of the National Authority for Assisted Reproduction from 2018–2020, when efforts to modernize the legislation began.

Key Provisions of the Bill

Raising the age limit for a woman to undergo assisted reproductive technology from 50 to 54, allowing for the cryopreservation of gametes for social reasons as well, and removing the 20-year time limit on its duration, the right of every individual to freely use their own reproductive material without their partner’s consent, and the right of the donor to decide for themselves whether to remain anonymous. In addition, the bill provides for the establishment of a Medically Assisted Reproduction Unit (MARU) and a Cryopreservation Bank at the «ATTIKON» exclusively to serve individuals who are HIV-positive.

In 2017, 148 children were born in Greece to women over the age of 50, and in 2019, 135 children were born

«It is already common for women over the age of 50 to give birth in many countries around the world, even in Greece, as women in these age groups underwent in vitro fertilization in other countries where the legal framework permits it, and then returned to Greece to give birth. »For example, in 2017, 148 children were born in Greece, and in 2019, 135 children were born to women over the age of 50,” Mr. Vrachnis told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA-MPA).

He adds that the current legal framework posed many obstacles for couples who wanted to have a child and were forced to seek solutions in other countries. «It is very important that couples will now be able to undergo in vitro fertilization in Greece and will not be forced to travel to another country.» In fact, Mr. Vrachnis notes that, due to the pandemic, from June 2021 through 2023, assisted reproduction is available for women aged 50 to 52, and the Authority has received approximately 400 requests from couples wishing to undergo assisted reproduction, which demonstrated the effectiveness of raising the age limit for women in Greece.

«This provision »solves a long-standing problem for infertile couples who were seeking a solution outside the country,'" says Mr. Pantos. Based on his own experience, he says that approximately 500 to 700 couples a year travel to Albania, Cyprus, or the U.S. to have a child.

Mixed system for the donation of reproductive material

There has been quite a bit of discussion, according to Mr. Vrachnis, has been sparked by the introduction of a mixed system for the donation of gametes, whereby it is up to the gamete donor to choose whether or not to remain anonymous, or whether to disclose their information to the child resulting from their donation, after the child reaches the age of majority and provided the child requests it.

Therefore, as Mr. Vrachnis explains, the donor may remain anonymous, may be identified, or may be identified after the child turns 18. An important point is that, regardless of which category the donor belongs to, he will never be able to meet the child born from his genetic material, unless the child’s parents or the child themselves disclose this to the donor. Unless we consider a specific subcase, adds Mr. Vrachnis, where the new law allows a couple to choose the donor.

Cryopreservation for Social Purposes

Regarding the option of cryopreservation for social purposes, Mr. Pantos emphasized to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA-MPA) that this was a demand from society, since a large percentage of women are postponing starting a family. This allows them to freeze their eggs without a medical necessity.

Regarding the removal of the 20-year limit on the duration of cryopreservation, Ms. Kalantaridou stated that «When the first law was enacted, it was not known that genetic material would remain viable even years later when thawed. We now know this, and the limit on cryopreservation had to be removed.».

Births resulting from in vitro fertilization account for 6.4% of all births

According to the drafters of the bill, the provisions set forth will help address the country’s low birth rate by supporting and facilitating the population’s access to medically assisted reproduction, as well as by strengthening the economy through attracting foreign citizens who wish to undergo medically assisted reproduction in our country .

According to statistics from the Medically Assisted Reproduction Units and Cryopreservation Banks, as submitted this year to the National Authority, births resulting from in vitro fertilization account for 6.4% of the total. Mr. Vrachnis told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA-MPA), emphasizing that «assisted reproduction can help address the demographic issue.».

«Specifically, in 2019, there were 29,000 IVF cycles, resulting in the birth of 5,521 children in Greece. In 2019, there were 83,763 births, with children conceived through IVF accounting for 6.4% of all births,» says Mr. Vrachnis. He further explains that the number of IVF births is actually higher, as many couples visit Greece to undergo assisted reproduction but the children are born in other countries.

Greece is at the forefront of developments in medically assisted reproduction, Mr. Pantos concludes. It has high-caliber scientists and services that make it a magnet for people from 67 countries, for infertile couples who wish to have children through medically assisted reproduction.

E. Fouseki