The use of infertility health care—known as Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART)—in the EU has grown dramatically in the last 20 years, and is expected to rise further as a result of fertility decline and population aging trends. Yet, the EU represents a highly uneven policy landscape for ARTs, due to diverse social, political, economic, and religious traditions of member states. This includes both policies that regulate the ART procedures, as well as policies that define the degree to which these health services are state subsidized. The European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology established guidelines for best clinical practices in the area of ARTs, which have been adopted in some, but not other, European nations. Consequently, access to ART care is highly unequal across and within nations, and often favors the wealthy strata of populations. Furthermore, inadequate (or lack of) regulation in some nations means that standards of care vary and there is little assurance that protocols for treatment are evidence-based or monitored. ART regulation across member states is increasingly relevant for the EU, raising new and complex policy and health care utilization questions about equality of access to healthcare and patient safety concerns.

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