Cryogenic Tragedy

 This guest post is from Danielle M.:

The Pacific Fertility Center, located in San Francisco, California, offers a wide range of services and treatments including the following: in vitro fertilization (“IVF”), egg freezing, an egg donor agency, sperm and egg banking, and genetic testing. For families that are struggling with infertility, providers like Pacific Fertility Center offer hope in situations that otherwise seem bleak.

In addition to fertility issues, families turn to IVF for a myriad of reasons. For some men and women suffering from long term illnesses or cancer, preserving sperm, eggs, or embryos may be the only way to produce biological children in the future. For servicemembers who face dangerous environmental exposures and long periods of separation from their families, building a family can be especially challenging. In short, couples turning to assisted reproductive technology do so out of compelling need, or even as a last resort. As a result, fertility centers owe the couples they treat diligent, competent, and compassionate care.

In March 2018, upon his arrival to the clinic, Pacific Fertility Center’s lab director discovered that cryogenic tank number four had failed, compromising thousands of eggs and embryos. For many PFC patients, the opportunity to have biological children was destroyed that day. In the years following this tragedy, many families have brought claims against Pacific Fertility Center and its tank manufacturer, Chart Industries, Inc. Hundreds of lawsuits have been filed to date by men, women, and couples who lost eggs or embryos in tank four. U.S. Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley declined to certify the cases as a class action. Instead, the actions have proceeded individually. In the first of such actions, five plaintiffs were awarded a $14.9 million verdict. Many other PCF patients are either in arbitration proceedings or awaiting their day in court.

In a bizarre and tragic coincidence, the cryogenic tank in San Francisco was not the only one to malfunction on March 4, 2018. On the exact same day, a fertility clinic operated by University Hospitals in Cleveland experienced a similar malfunction, rendering 4,000 eggs and embryos non-viable.

With the growing number of couples seeking fertility treatment, legislators and industry experts should strongly consider implementing regulations that protect families and prevent future harm of this nature.