Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU) has announced that she will launch an initiative aimed at enabling the Bundestag to grant a conscience vote allowing egg donation.
In an interview with the Tagesspiegel, Warken said, “Currently many couples seeking children travel abroad. I want to help these couples within a regulated framework here, while keeping clear limits”. She added that if an egg is already available following a fertility treatment, it could be released for donation without the need for a new extraction. Warken emphasises that the goal is not to open every door, but rather to adopt a measured approach.
Warken plans to discuss the potential approval of egg donation with Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig (SPD) and Family Minister Karin Prien (CDU). “We will then talk with the coalition parliamentary groups and see if a proposal emerges from the centre of Parliament, as is usual with ethical issues” she explained.
Egg donation involves implanting an egg from one woman into the uterus of another woman who wishes to become pregnant. The practice is presently prohibited in Germany because of concerns over donor safety and because, from the perspective of some, a child would then have two biological mothers. The Women’s Union, headed by Warken, has already called for egg donation to be approved, though no such provision is included in the coalition agreement.
