BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2531
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
2531 (Burke)
As Introduced February 19, 2016
Majority vote
------------------------------------------------------------------
|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Health |15-0 |Wood, Maienschein, | |
| | |Bonilla, Burke, Chiu, | |
| | |Dababneh, Gomez, | |
| | |Lackey, Nazarian, | |
| | |Olsen, Ridley-Thomas, | |
| | |Rodriguez, Santiago, | |
| | |Steinorth, Thurmond | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Repeals the ban on compensation for women providing
human oocytes (eggs) for research, and instead allows a woman
providing eggs for research to be compensated for her time,
discomfort, and inconvenience in the same manner as other
research subjects. Specifically, this bill:
1)Prohibits payment received for providing eggs for research
AB 2531
Page 2
from being for the eggs themselves, or predicated on the
number obtained, including if none are obtained.
2)Requires the proposed compensation amount to be determined by
a human subject research panel or institutional review board
(IRB).
3)Specifies, in the event that a human subject research panel or
IRB determines that a proposed compensation amount is
inappropriate, the panel or board to determine an appropriate
compensation amount.
4)Requires the IRB, if a woman is compensated for providing eggs
for the purpose of infertility treatment, and any eggs or
embryos in excess of those needed for fertility are offered
for research, to disregard the amount of compensation if all
of the following conditions are met:
a) The clinic performing egg retrieval is a member of the
Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology;
b) The procurement and disposition for research purposes of
eggs initially provided for reproductive uses, either for
use by the donor or another woman, shall not knowingly
compromise the optimal reproductive success of the woman in
the infertility treatment;
c) The infertility treatment protocol is established prior
to requesting or obtaining consent for donation for
research purposes and the prospect of donation for research
does not alter the timing, method, or procedures selected
for clinical care;
AB 2531
Page 3
d) The woman in infertility treatment makes the
determination that she does not want or need the eggs for
her own reproductive success; and,
e) The donation of eggs for research is done without
valuable consideration. Valuable consideration does not
include reasonable payment for the removal, processing,
disposal, preservation, quality control, and storage of
eggs or embryos.
5)Makes various legislative findings and declarations, stating
that concerns that women will be exploited if compensated for
providing human eggs for research have not been borne out in
the states where compensation is allowed, and that sufficient
protections are in place to treat women providing human eggs
for research, similar to any other research subject, and that
women are competent and able to make decisions for themselves.
FISCAL EFFECT: None.
COMMENTS: According to the author, this bill promotes medical
research in California while ensuring research participants are
fairly treated by removing the prohibition on compensation for
women participating in egg donation for medical research. The
author states that we all benefit from those willing to
participate in research, and the current processes in place are
designed to appropriately reward participants, while protecting
them from abusive or coercive practices. The author notes that
this bill ensures that women are treated equally to all other
research subjects - allowing them to actively evaluate their
participation in research studies and be paid for their time,
trouble, and inconvenience when they do participate. The author
concludes, given that compensation is allowed in 47 other
states, and there is no evidence of abuse, it's time to
reconsider our ban, just as New York did.
AB 2531
Page 4
Research using donated eggs. Embryonic stem cells are a unique
discovery with the power to unlock causes of and treatments for
many human illnesses. Diseases and disabilities such as heart
disease, spinal cord injuries, juvenile diabetes (Type I
diabetes), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's
disease), Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease afflict
millions of Americans. These are some of the most debilitating
diseases known to modern medicine in that they often severely
limit the activity of the affected individual, cause painful
degeneration of normal bodily functions, bring on premature
death, and cause immense suffering for the individual and his or
her family.
Potential benefits of embryo research include an improved
understanding of fertilization, implantation, and early
pregnancy biology and, with this understanding, possibly fewer
undesired outcomes, such as miscarriage. For infertile couples,
embryo research offers the possibility of more effective
therapies: research efforts helped optimize conditions for
intracytoplasmic sperm injection, embryo culture, and
cryopreservation, for example. For others at risk for heritable
genetic disease who feel pregnancy termination is undesirable or
inappropriate, embryo research has led to the possibility of
early, accurate genetic diagnosis. Preimplantation genetic
diagnosis provides diagnostic results at a point before
implantation, so pregnancy termination can be avoided. In
addition to these benefits of embryo research in general, stem
cell research promises additional potential benefits, for such
work may lead both to a better understanding of the processes
leading to tissue differentiation and function and to possible
therapies by creating lines that can replace diseased or
nonfunctioning tissues.
Analysis Prepared by:
AB 2531
Page 5
Lara Flynn / HEALTH / (916) 319-2097 FN:
0002697