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SuisseSperm banks taken by storm since the adoption of marriage for all
Since July 1, lesbian couples can get married and the demand for having children by insemination is exploding.
Sperm banks have had to call on new donors to meet the increase in demand.
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The rules changed on July 1 of this year. Since that date, homosexual couples can get married and sperm donation is also open to lesbian couples. Six months later, the rush for sperm banks is important.
Clinics specializing in fertility have been facing an increase in requests since July 1, as reported by “Blick“. “The fact that so many people take this decision immediately surprised us,” explains Dr. Peter Fehr of the OVA IVF Clinic in Zurich in the German-speaking media. The establishment has been forced to recruit new donors as the demand has increased. Because in this clinic, the rules are strict: no more than eight children can be born from the same donor, and the latter is only admitted for five years.
The CPMA (Medical Center for Fertility) in Lausanne has recorded a number of requests which has doubled since July. Figures that reflect the fact that many people waited for the new rules to take the plunge. In French-speaking Switzerland, there is therefore also a great need for sperm donors.
Habit changes
And if, abroad, clinics offer choices as to eye color, blood group or stature, this is not possible in Switzerland. “Couples must trust us,” says Dr. Peter Fehr. Another constraint poses problems for clinics: almost 50% of lesbian couples would like both women to have a child from the same donor.
At Fertisuisse, in Olten (SO), the demand is also marked. While lesbian couples represent only 5 to 10% of all inseminations, the trend is on the rise, explains Dr. Anna Raggi, head of sperm donation at the clinic. “As regards inseminations with sperm donation, homosexual couples have even exceeded heterosexual couples in whom there is male sterility”, confirms the practitioner on the German-speaking website.
The effects of the war in Ukraine
The Russian Ministry of Health offers men sent to war as part of the partial mobilization to “save their semen for free”. Demand is apparently high, reports German news agency dpa. In recent weeks, media have reported that the demand for deposits in sperm banks has increased significantly as a result of the mobilization. The reason would be that the conscripts who risk dying in Ukraine would like to at least ensure their descendants in this way.
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