Health ministry coy on embryo genetic testing

New in-vitro fertilisation services are being planned and the Health Ministry is in the process of “actively drafting” changes to the law, MaltaToday is informed.

However, the ministry gave no timeline and stopped short of confirming whether the new services will include embryo genetic testing.

“The Health Ministry is actively drafting together with the State Advocate Office, the necessary changes to the Embryo Protection Act,” a ministry spokesperson said. “The amendments will include the introduction of new IVF services.”

Last April, Health Minister Chris Fearne said he would be ready to put forward amendments to the IVF law so that pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) of embryos would be allowed.

PGD allows doctors to test embryos in couples that run the risk of transmitting certain genetic disorders to their offspring. The tests are done before the embryos are implanted in the woman.

PGD is currently not carried out in Malta since the law does not allow doctors to discard defective embryos or give them up for scientific research, which is normally what happens in countries where PGD is allowed.

PGD helps increase the chances of success for those couples with known genetic disorders since only healthy embryos are transferred to the woman.

Asked specifically whether the ministry was drafting changes to make PGD possible, a spokesperson said the government “is committed to continue to strengthen IVF services”.

She added that these changes will be discussed, “as per the normal procedure, at Cabinet and then at parliamentary group level”.

The ministry did not outline a timeline for the draft to be put forward for discussion.

PGD is an ethically contentious issue and could encounter resistance from the Office of the President if a law is put forward in parliament.

When asked last month whether he will sign into law a Bill introducing genetic testing of embryos, President George Vella was non-committal.

“We will cross the bridges when we come to them,” a spokesperson for Vella had told MaltaToday when asked whether the President had any moral objections to PGD.

Any act of parliament requires the President’s signature to become law and refusal to do so could create a constitutional crisis.

The IVF law was last updated in 2018 when sweeping changes made the treatment accessible to lesbians and single women, allowed embryo freezing to be an integral part of the process and permitted doctors to fertilise up to five eggs. It also made it possible for egg and sperm donation to take place.

However, the law still imposes certain limitations such as the obligation on doctors to use all frozen embryos, even if they are not considered viable, before carrying out another stimulation cycle. This aspect of the law would have to change if PGD is introduced.

The introduction of surrogacy, which formed part of the original 2018 amendments, was removed from the final Bill after the proposal encountered resistance.

At the time, Fearne had promised to present a separate amendment on surrogacy to enable a focussed and thorough discussion on the contentious subject.