California Senator on fertility industry regulation
A California state senator has taken action toward providing oversight for the state's unregulated fertility industry. Gloria Negrete McLeod (D-Chino) introduced SB 674, which would define fertility clinics and egg extraction sites as "outpatient settings," bringing them under the jurisdiction of the Medical Board of California and establishing accreditation standards and guidelines for their operation. In a press statement, Sen. Negrete McLeod said, "It is alarming that the State of California has no one watching out for patients who go to these fertility clinics or surgical centers. There should be a greater level of scrutiny over these clinics because of their increasing popularity."
The district of Sen. Negrete McLeod is just a few miles from the home of the mother of the recent octuplets. The senator is also the former chair of the California Legislative Women's Caucus. A few years ago, she introduced a bill which would have brought conflict-of-interest provisions to the state's stem cell research agency.
