Paper Short Abstract:

In Switzerland, married lesbian couples gained access to fertility clinics in 2022. Yet, some couples still prefer to travel abroad due to ART restrictions and discriminations. Drawing on interviews with lesbian couples who accessed ART abroad, we examine their cross-border healthcare trajectories.

Paper Abstract:

On 1 July 2022, marriage became legal for same-sex couples in Switzerland, allowing married lesbian couples to benefit from ART and the recognition of co-maternity from birth. Before that, lesbian couples had to resort to reproductive travel to access ART abroad, in conjunction with healthcare in Switzerland before and after insemination. However, despite the legal change, some technologies such as egg donation (reception of oocytes from partner) remain forbidden, even for married couples. In addition, in Switzerland, the donor is selected by physicians at fertility clinics, with the aim of matching the parents' phenotype, rather than by the parents themselves. Finally, childbirth and parenting culture in Switzerland remain strongly heteronormative and healthcare providers are ill-prepared to welcome lesbian couples, including in fertility clinics. In consequence, some couples seeking ART may still prefer to travel abroad

Based on medical fieldworks in Switzerland and in-depth interviews with Swiss lesbian couples who accessed ART abroad, this paper examines their experiences with reproductive travels. How did they choose the country and clinic for their insemination? How did they select their donor? We also analyse how ART regulations and the recent legal changes for lesbians’ reproduction in Switzerland shape intended mothers’ choices and paths to parenthood, intersecting with socio-economic norms and medical disparities in access to treatments.