Article ID: CBB877075489

Age-discriminated IVF Access and Evidence-based Ageism: Is There a Better Way? (2022)

unapi

Access to state-funded fertility treatments is age-restricted in many countries based on epidemiological evidence showing age-associated fertility decline and aimed at administering scarce resources. In this article, we consider whether age-related restrictions can be considered ageist and what this entails for a normative appraisal of access criteria. We use the UK as a case study due to the state-funded and centrally regulated nature of in vitro fertilization (IVF) provision. We begin by reviewing concepts of ageism and age discrimination in gerontological scholarship and contend that it is analytically useful to differentiate between them when considering age-restricted health services. We then argue that criteria to access IVF could be considered indirectly ageist so far as they rely on an age-related evidence base that manifests ageist categorizations of persons. Lastly, we examine whether there could be more normatively desirable alternatives to devise criteria to access fertility treatment, considering “lifestyle” as a potential candidate. We conclude, however, that lifestyle-based discrimination is problematic because, unlike age-based discrimination, it risks exacerbating existing socioeconomic and ethnic inequalities.

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Citation URI
https://data.isiscb.org/isis/citation/CBB877075489/

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Authors & Contributors
Moreira, Tiago
Barnett, Clive
Chaney, Sarah
Ferber, Sarah
Jasanoff, Sheila
Toulalan, Sarah
Journals
Science, Technology, and Human Values
Social Studies of Science
History of the Human Sciences
Tapuya: Latin American Science, Technology and Society
Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society
East Asian Science, Technology and Society: An International Journal
Publishers
Harvard University Press
Palgrave Macmillan
Routledge
Concepts
Science and technology studies (STS)
Science and State
Medicine and society
Aging
Gerontology
Research
People
Comfort, Alex
Time Periods
21st century
20th century, late
16th century
17th century
18th century
Early modern
Places
United Kingdom
China
Germany
Africa
Brazil
Israel
Institutions
Venezuelan Institute of Scientific Research - IVIC
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