Ethical considerations of the new reproductive technologies. By the Ethics Committee (1986-87) of The American Fertility Society in light of Instruction on the Respect for Human Life in its Origin and on the Dignity of Procreation issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

In September 1986, The American Fertility Society issued a report, Ethical Considerations of the New Reproductive Technologies, setting forth the then-held ethical position of the Society on the various new reproductive technologies. In 1987, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued the Instruction on the Respect for Human Life and Its Origin and on the Dignity of Procreation. While both documents state that very similar moral criteria were used to derive ethical positions with respect to various reproductive procedures, the conclusions as to the ethical acceptability of the various procedures differ sharply in the two documents. The question can be raised about the procedure used by the Congregation of the Faith to derive its conclusions from the stated premises. Thus, while stating that "the individual integrally and adequately considered" is to be the basis of the moral judgment, the fact is that most conclusions are based on and referenced to past Catholic statements. While the difference in conclusion from similar premises may be troubling to society, it can be especially paralyzing to four groups: (1) those who face problems that might be solved by one or another of the new reproductive technologies; (2) those who are involved in applying them; (3) those who are responsible for institutional policies where such techniques may be applied; and (4) those who are in a position to influence public policy in a legislative or regulatory way. Because of the conflicting conclusions of the two documents, the present Ethics Committee (1986-87) of The American Fertility Society was convened and considered these guidelines in the light of the Instruction.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)