WHEN TERESA BARBOSA MARRIED her husband Michael, children were always part of the plan. The couple was delighted when she became pregnant a few years later, but their joy soon turned to despair. "As we prepped for this new chapter, a fire destroyed our home," she told Newsweek. "In the ashes of our home, we learned that my pregnancy was terminating. Everything was literally crumbling around us."
Over the next decade, the couple drained their life savings paying for round after round of in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments that were unsuccessful. "We E KHA RAH were broken emotionally and financially," she says.
In 2019, the couple adopted Sofia, now 5, and Barbosa founded the nonprofit Gift of Parenthood to help others in dire need-many of them women of color like herpay for IVF treatments. Gift of Parenthood awards quarterly grants, Barbosa said, and that funding has helped about 10 babies be born to families who desperately want them.
As the fall of Roe v. Wade continues to reverberate across the U.S., Barbosa and others fear the Supreme Court's decision could have far-reaching consequences that go beyond regulating abortion and put IVF in jeopardy. Several states have bans that define "life" as beginning at the moment of fertilization. Others want to move further and introduce "personhood laws" that give fertilized eggs, embryos and fetuses the same rights as those already born.
That could lead to penalties for discarding embryos and limit how many eggs can be fertilized per IVF cycle, experts tell Newsweek. Doing so would reduce the chances of success and drive up the cost, they say.
This story is from the September 02, 2022 edition of Newsweek Europe.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the September 02, 2022 edition of Newsweek Europe.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
All the Right Moves
PR experts tell Newsweek the winning strategies that keep Dancing With the Stars as popular as ever after 19 years
Front Line of History
A fascinating series of snapshots showing a medic's experience of the Korean War have been uncovered by his grandson
CLEAR AND PRESIDENTIAL DANGER
IN A CAMPAIGN THAT'S BEEN FULL OF SHOCKS, COULD AN OCTOBER SURPRISE PROVIDE A FINAL TWIST IN THE RACE TO THE WHITE HOUSE?
'We're Not Beasts, We're Just People'
Trans MMA fighter Alana McLaughlin on coping with societal and family of being the 'bigger person' expectations
Is This France's #MeToo Moment?
The trial of Dominique Pélicot, who has admitted drugging his wife and allowing her alleged rape, has highlighted a culture of sexual violence in the country
Washington is 'Playing With Fire'
In an exclusive interview with Newsweek, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warns the U.S. to accept his country's proposal to end the war in Ukraine or face \"dangerous consequences\"
Zachary Quinto
ZACHARY QUINTO HAS PLAYED DOCTORS BEFORE, BUT HE'S \"NEVER PLAYED a doctor like\" the one he plays on NBC's Brilliant Minds (September 23).
Adam Brody
NETFLIX KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT MILLENNIALS want, and it's to see Adam Brody and Kristen Bell fall in love.
Partners in Crime
Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt shares his delight at teaming up with Shailene Woodley again in new Amazon Prime movie Killer Heat
HOW TO FIND A WORKPLACE THAT LOVES YOU BACK
Insights from America's Top Most Loved Workplaces