Election Day is less than one month away. Standing on both sides of the voting isle dangles a personhood amendment in North Dakota, Measure 1, rallied by extremists with the intent to change its state constitution.\u00a0 If passed, Measure 1 could threaten birth control, stem-cell research, and in vitro fertilization (IVF).<\/p>\n
Election year is prime time for personhood bills to emerge.<\/p>\n
According to the Jamestown Sun, reporter, Ryan Johnson explains there is one infertility treatment clinic in North Dakota, Sanford Reproductive Medicine Clinic, which offers IVF.<\/p>\n
If Measure 1 passes, all IVF treatments will come to a screeching halt.<\/p>\n
For Measure 1, the Nov. ballot spells out the following, \u201cThe inalienable right to life of every human being at any stage of development must be recognized and protected.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr. Stephanie Dahl of the Sanford Reproductive Medicine Clinic said if Measure 1 passes, IVF would no longer be an option.<\/p>\n
Johnson writes, \u201cIt will affect hundreds of North Dakota families who dream of having children,\u201d Dahl said. She continued, \u201cIVF is often the only successful option for infertility patients, especially those diagnosed with male-factor infertility.\u201d<\/p>\n
In his article, Johnsons explains how the treatment in creating an embryo may at times produce abnormal eggs, which would not be suitable for implantation.<\/p>\n
Dahl told reporters at a press conference, \u201cHowever, under Measure 1, these abnormally fertilized eggs must be protected, even if they have no chance of growing into a healthy baby and will result in miscarriage,\u201d she said. \u201cEven a lab accident, such as an incubator malfunction that destroys embryos, could become a criminal offense.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Johnson, although the North Dakota Medical Association opposed the legislation in 2013, as voting day nears, they\u2019re standing on new ground.\u00a0 It won\u2019t oppose nor support.<\/p>\n
Dr. Steffen Christensen took part in opening the doors to the Sanford Reproductive Medicine Clinic two decades ago.\u00a0 To date, he told reporters, more than 1,000 children were born through the medical efforts of the clinic.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut this measure could \u2018literally shut us down,\u2019\u201d said Christensen, adding how it could push him into retirement.\u00a0 Christensen also wanted reporters to know, \u201cIf approved, his colleagues could face criminal charges for what they do on a routine basis.\u00a0 We\u2019ve been successful, we\u2019ve followed all the ethical rules and regulations and we want to continue to serve the patients of North Dakota and our whole region.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnson reported if Sanford Reproductive Medicine Clinic is forced to close its doors, the patients they would have served will now have to journey to others states.<\/p>\n
In Valley News Life, Dahl was reported saying, \u201cIf Measure 1 passes, we will stop offering IVF immediately. We will begin the process of finding other centers in Minnesota and in South Dakota and Colorado to accept our patients.\u201d<\/p>\n
National reproductive health groups are opposing this ballot line item.<\/p>\n