The founder of a controversial website which pairs up sperm donors with potential parents today launched a new venture involving human eggs.
John Gonzalez, who set up www.ManNotIncluded.com, has now unveiled a site to help supply eggs, aptly named www.WomanNotIncluded.com.
Like the sperm site, infertile women looking for an egg donor pay a subscription fee and then pay extra for each search of the database and introduction they receive.
Arrangements are then made for the woman to anonymously donate her eggs at a fertility clinic where screening, IVF and implantation take places, all at extra cost to the recipient.
The donor receives expenses, but in the UK they are not allowed to be paid directly for their eggs under the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) regulations.
The database is global, meaning a couple wishing to use a donor from another country could buy the eggs without the same limits on expense costs.
Mr Gonzalez, who is based in London’s Harley Street, said: “There always has been that thing in my mind from day one of ManNotIncluded that there was going to be a sister site to help women looking for egg donors because that is a huge problem, certainly in the UK and the rest of Europe.
“Although there are a few self-help groups set up on the Internet to help people looking for egg donors these are fragmented.
“We believe this is the world’s first comprehensive online provider of human eggs.”
Mr Gonzalez said would-be recipients paid a subscription fee of £145 and could pay between £600 and £1,200 for each matching with a donor.
ManNotIncluded, which launched in June 2002 and has so far resulted in six births, causes controversy for helping lesbians and single women conceive, as well as heterosexual couples.
Mr Gonzalez defended the service they offered, saying they were committed to helping all women, regardless of age, sexuality or martial status.
He said he expected the number of women donors signed up on the website to increase rapidly once it was up and running.
“We saw with ManNotIncluded we started off with very few donors and recipients but now there are more than 9,000 sperm donors registered.
“So we are expecting this to take on a life of its own as well, especially as it can be used in any country,” Mr Gonzalez said.
For the launch around 40 donors have signed up, mostly from the UK but also in Italy and France.
The donors supply details about their health history, ethnic origin and hair and eye colour, and can also include information about their academic achievements.
Mr Gonzalez said it had been expensive to set up the site but he was hoping it would prove an equal success to ManNotIncluded.
“There is now more acceptance of the product and the way it works.
“Most people accept that we have acted responsibly in how we have made the site work.”
A spokeswoman for the HFEA said while recipients were not allowed to pay for eggs, minimal expenses could be paid to donors.
These cover travel expenses, accommodation and childminding costs.
They are also allowed to pay up to £50 a day in “financial loss allowance”.
The spokeswoman said the expenses were low because egg donation should be altruistic and not done purely for financial gain.
http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=2563818
John Gonzalez, who set up www.ManNotIncluded.com, has now unveiled a site to help supply eggs, aptly named www.WomanNotIncluded.com.
Like the sperm site, infertile women looking for an egg donor pay a subscription fee and then pay extra for each search of the database and introduction they receive.
Arrangements are then made for the woman to anonymously donate her eggs at a fertility clinic where screening, IVF and implantation take places, all at extra cost to the recipient.
The donor receives expenses, but in the UK they are not allowed to be paid directly for their eggs under the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) regulations.
The database is global, meaning a couple wishing to use a donor from another country could buy the eggs without the same limits on expense costs.
Mr Gonzalez, who is based in London’s Harley Street, said: “There always has been that thing in my mind from day one of ManNotIncluded that there was going to be a sister site to help women looking for egg donors because that is a huge problem, certainly in the UK and the rest of Europe.
“Although there are a few self-help groups set up on the Internet to help people looking for egg donors these are fragmented.
“We believe this is the world’s first comprehensive online provider of human eggs.”
Mr Gonzalez said would-be recipients paid a subscription fee of £145 and could pay between £600 and £1,200 for each matching with a donor.
ManNotIncluded, which launched in June 2002 and has so far resulted in six births, causes controversy for helping lesbians and single women conceive, as well as heterosexual couples.
Mr Gonzalez defended the service they offered, saying they were committed to helping all women, regardless of age, sexuality or martial status.
He said he expected the number of women donors signed up on the website to increase rapidly once it was up and running.
“We saw with ManNotIncluded we started off with very few donors and recipients but now there are more than 9,000 sperm donors registered.
“So we are expecting this to take on a life of its own as well, especially as it can be used in any country,” Mr Gonzalez said.
For the launch around 40 donors have signed up, mostly from the UK but also in Italy and France.
The donors supply details about their health history, ethnic origin and hair and eye colour, and can also include information about their academic achievements.
Mr Gonzalez said it had been expensive to set up the site but he was hoping it would prove an equal success to ManNotIncluded.
“There is now more acceptance of the product and the way it works.
“Most people accept that we have acted responsibly in how we have made the site work.”
A spokeswoman for the HFEA said while recipients were not allowed to pay for eggs, minimal expenses could be paid to donors.
These cover travel expenses, accommodation and childminding costs.
They are also allowed to pay up to £50 a day in “financial loss allowance”.
The spokeswoman said the expenses were low because egg donation should be altruistic and not done purely for financial gain.
http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=2563818
