http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20262609,00.html
http://www.capitolweekly.net/article.php?_c=xt2xnktyywhqrj&issueId=xspaoignvy9jhb&xid=xt1wfvpujdxifs
http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/news/ci_11825251
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Timely post-partisan commentary on the political, social, legal, and economic issues facing the United States and California.
From an economic viewpoint, the state should be doing everything possible to help or encourage people to get off of welfare. To that extent, should the state not have a responsibility to ensure that more "OctoMoms" don't plague our taxpayer dollars with increasing welfare payments, not to mention more children being brought up into poverty. This case provides the perfect momentum for law makers to put a bill in place to increase CA's health board regulations and man-power (probably more money too..) From an ethical viewpoint, is the State to decide how many children a mother can be implanted with, or how wealthy she has to be to not be put into the public spotlight for having eight children? Any line drawn would seem to be somewhat arbitrary and political. New regulations would probably stop doctors from doing risky or unethical surgeries, just as long as the state does not go too far (denying a boob job b/c it could cause back problems, or regulating against middle aged women wanting in vitro). If regulations could have saved Kanye's mom, and prevented a welfare mom from having eight more kids, then practical rules should be enacted. I wonder if regulations could have prevented 808s & Heartbreak from ever being made...
ReplyDeletei think this raises Roe/woman's right to choose issues... tough to say if this sort of legislation is a good or bad thing...
ReplyDeleteI worry about legislators trying to tell doctors what is right. I think this ties into the right to choose, among other things. What about religions that extol the virtues of large families?
ReplyDeleteEven if we aren't talking about right to choose/equal protection kind of issues, I still don't want non-expert legislators to take it upon themselves to dictate to doctors what to do. And I think Mickey's concerns about the state going to far are right on point - I think this would be a slippery slope. Once we let the state start getting more involved with regulating doctors, it will start to seem like it is their duty to establish pervasive regulations. And I worry about legislators confusing safety and morality when it comes to medicine.
I agree that population control is a huge issue - one that does not get enough attention in my opinion. I would rather there be limits on the number of kids a family can have - that way we aren't singling out people using in vitro fertilization. Neither solution is ideal, but at least one doesn't selectively discriminate by fertility or wealth.