Reproductive Issues in America : A Reference Handbook (Contemporary World Issues)

A balanced and thoughtful analysis of human reproduction issues in the United States with emphasis on the ethical and policy implications of cutting-edge reproductive technologies. Few subjects are as divisive and partisan as the issues surrounding the propagation of the human species. This thorough examination covers the full scope of the debates and offers an up to the minute survey of the controversial technologies that are at the heart of reproductive rights in the United States. The areas explored range from abortion and sterilization to fetal research and human cloning. The moral, societal, and public policy implications of each subject are examined thoroughly, with emphasis on those areas where cutting-edge technology has raced ahead of public policy, thereby creating new concerns for ethicists and policy-makers. Legislative oversight or the freedom to pursue reproductive technologies at any cost, this debate is far from over. Includes a comprehensive chronology of key events and people related to the issue of reproductive rights from 1900 to the present Provides a glossary of medical and legal terms used in the text