Final Report (all chapters)

6.1 Italy – from the “Wild West” to “Politburo”?
On February 10, 2004, the Italian Chamber of Representatives passed a comprehensive bill
titled “Norme in materia di procreazione medicalmente assistita” (“Norms concerning medically
assisted procreation”). The bill, already passed by the Italian Senate in December of 2003, is now
law. 2 We have chosen to examine in some depth the Italian case for one main reason: The new
legislation provides an excellent illustration of the possible negative consequences of a laissezfaire
approach to reproductive medicine, followed by a late and excessive legislative reaction. To
put it simply, the longer a legislative body delays crafting a response to new scientific and
medical developments, the likelier it becomes that legislators will overreact.
Until the passage of bill n.40, Italy exercised only minimal oversight over reproductive
medicine and research. Not coincidentally, among ART practitioners and ART patients, Italy
was known as the “Wild West” of reproductive medicine. The new law has changed all this. In
terms of access restrictions to ART technologies, the types of reproductive technologies
available to patients, and the ends that justify the recourse to assisted reproductive technologies,
the Italian legislation is one of if not the most restrictive legislative frameworks worldwide.
Hence the term “politburo” used by an Italian columnist to describe the new approach to
regulating reproductive medicine.
The costs of this legislative overreaction are likely to be significant, and they are not only
economic in nature. In the present case, the negative consequences of the new law will be felt by
research institutions, by patients, and by ART practitioners. Scientists will find themselves
incapable of conducting research that largely is considered legitimate in many other liberal
democracies. Patients will be deprived of important reproductive services, and the industry likely
will suffer considerable economic losses.
The law, though it does not explicitly discuss guiding principles, is informed by clear ethical
standards. ART technologies can be used exclusively for the treatment of medically diagnosed
infertility, and are not a means for individuals to meet their reproductive desires. Accordingly,
IVF is considered a medical technology of last resort intended to help heterosexual couples have
a baby. The protection of embryos has priority over the demands of non-traditional couples,
singles, research institutions, and in some cases, over the interests of the couple. In this sense, the
Italian law embodies very specific views of sexuality, of the family, and of the moral status of
the embryo – views that are quite close to traditional Catholic teachings on these issues.
The law consists of 18 fairly straightforward articles. Unlike most other legislative
approaches in the area of ART and biomedical research, the Italian statute is comprehensive. It
limits access to ART technologies, it describes which ART procedures can be used and how, and
it spells out the rationale for resorting to ART treatments. It also sets clear legislative boundaries
to what researchers are entitled to do in this area. In addition, the legislation requires the
implementation of a licensing scheme for all ART clinics, to be administered by the Italian
2
Legge 19 febbraio 2004, n. 40, available at http://www.parlamento.it/parlam/leggi/04040l.htm (Medically
Assisted Reproduction Law).
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