More Background on Costa Rica’s IVF Fight

It is no surprise that a major player in the push to force IVF in Costa Rica is the Center for Reproductive Rights. In 2004, CRR filed an amicus brief to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, arguing that Costa Rica’s 2000 ban on IVF: “violates the couples’ rights to have children and develop their own families under international human rights law.”

CRR is a key player(pg. 19) in the push for an international right to abortion, claiming that international law requires countries to change their abortion laws, while there is in fact no international right to abortion in UN treaties. Most recently, CRR teamed up with UNFPA in a joint report declaring a human right to healthcare services, including drugs used for abortions. This in spite of the fact that no such right exists in a UN treaty.

Seeing the trend here? CRR has a record of working to create rights where they do not exist, by pretending that they do exist. So, one has to ask, does this right to IVF really exist in international law? Does Costa Rica really have an international law obligation to allow IVF?

View online at: https://c-fam.org/turtle_bay/more-background-on-costa-ricas-ivf-fight/

© 2026 C-Fam (Center for Family & Human Rights).
Permission granted for unlimited use. Credit required.
www.c-fam.org