Close up of surgery team operating.

Access to Uterus Transplantation and the Workplace

By Natasha Hammond-Browning

Uterus transplantation first hit the headlines in 2014, with the birth of the first baby born following a uterus transplant. This first birth in Sweden has led to trials worldwide. Most recently, in August 2023, the United Kingdom saw its first uterus transplant. In the United States, the University of Alabama (UAB) Medicine uterus transplant program is the first program to offer uterus transplantation outside of a clinical trial, and the first birth in that program was in May 2023.

While recent estimates of future uterus transplants are relatively small — for instance, Womb Transplant UK estimates that between 20-30 uterus transplants could be performed annually — the increasing number of uterus transplant recipients should not be ignored. In particular, questions of access and the workplace rights of those undergoing this surgery are important to consider. This post will briefly lay out some of the issues that may arise for potential recipients and their partners in the workplace.

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Child smiles at pregnant mother.

Uterus Transplants and the Right to Experience Pregnancy

By I. Glenn Cohen

It is estimated that roughly one in five hundred U.S. women suffer from Uterine Factor Infertility — they were born without a uterus, they lost their uterus, or their uterus no longer functions. Until very recently, this essentially meant that pregnancy was not an option for these women. Because of uterus transplants, this is beginning to change. Such transplants raise a host of legal and ethical questions, which I will preview in this piece.

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