Man's £1m suit over sperm mix-up
Your support helps us to tell the story
This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.
The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.
Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.
A man who donated sperm so that his fiancée could be inseminated is suing the hospital that gave the sample to the wrong woman.
The plaintiff, identified in court papers only as "MH", is seeking $2m (£1m) from Oregon Health & Sciences University. He also filed a separate lawsuit to determine whether a child was born. The hospital acknowledges that the man's sperm was used to inseminate a woman he had not intended it for, and said new safeguards had been implemented.
In September 2005 the man's sample was given to a woman who had been trying for years with her husband to start a family. The husband stated that after the insemination procedure, doctors told the couple of the mistake and asked them to return to the hospital "so that my wife could be given some medicine to make sure she did not become pregnant".
He and his wife "were not permitted to leave until my wife swallowed the medicine under the watchful eye of a nurse", the documents said. He also said that the fertility clinic offered a free abortion if she became pregnant "and two free artificial inseminations" if she didn't. The hospital declined to comment.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments