California
OKs HIV sperm-cleansing for conception

California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill into law Tuesday that allows women to safely conceive children with their HIV-positive partners. The legislation, sponsored by state senator Carole Migden, approves an assisted reproduction technique that cleanses sperm of HIV, which was previously outlawed by the state.

"All families deserve access to the tools that reproductive science has to offer," Migden said in a statement. "In this case California law needs to catch up with technology because, whether inadvertent or not, it discriminates against HIV-positive men. My legislation will ensure equal reproductive rights for all women, regardless of their partners' HIV status."

According to the statement, out of 700 successful conceptions through the procedure in other places, not one child was born with the virus.

Delaware was the only other state to ban the process. (The Advocate)