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Kate Chan

Hong Kong should require a double-check mechanism for all embryo biopsy procedures and overhaul its reproductive technology law, the city’s largest political party has proposed following a rare mix-up of specimens at a fertility clinic.
The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) made the call on Thursday, nearly a month after the Council on Human Reproductive Technology suspended most operations at Heal Fertility in Central after discovering that embryo biopsy specimens sent for genetic testing belonged to the wrong parents.
DAB lawmaker Nixie Lam Lam said the existing mandatory two-person verification process did not cover every stage of embryo biopsy handling, and warned that the current incident-reporting guidelines lacked statutory backing.
“We suggest amending the code of practice so that every single step – from sample extraction, sealing, and transport, all the way to laboratory receiving – requires two-person verification and record-keeping,” she said.
The Council on Human Reproductive Technology, a statutory body established in 2001, regulates the city’s reproductive technology procedures and embryo research.
Healthcare institutions providing reproductive technology procedures must hold licences issued by the council. Currently, 13 public and 15 private organisations are licensed.
A code of practice on reproductive technology and embryo research was also issued by the council to set standards for the practice.
Lam also criticised the delay in notifying authorities about the biopsy mix-ups, noting that the Department of Health was not informed until July 3.
“The most sensible approach is to report to relevant authorities immediately,” she said. “If we can enforce a 24-hour mandatory reporting rule, it will help protect affected individuals and allow them to take prompt action.”
The mix-ups were uncovered when a laboratory run by the Chinese University of Hong Kong found that embryo biopsy specimens from two women did not belong to them.
Only one of seven specimens submitted for the first woman was genuinely hers, while neither of the two specimens assigned to the second woman matched her.


Heal Fertility was notified of the mismatches by the laboratory on May 26 and June 4, respectively, while the council was not informed until June 17, and set up a task force the following day to investigate.
A police report was later filed through the Department of Health.
The Post learned on Monday that a clinic employee was suspected of lying to cover up the mix-up. Police also listed the case as fraud. The worker, who has returned to Malaysia, is wanted by the force.
Lam also argued that the legislation governing human reproductive technology had failed to keep pace with advances in medicine.
“The last five amendments by the council [to the law] – aside from updating the 10-year storage limit and genetic disease lists – were mostly administrative changes, like updating bureau names, rather than technical upgrades,” Lam said.
She added that the ordinance should be updated to reflect new technical processes and medical operations, noting that many new procedures had emerged in recent years.
Lawyer and independent lawmaker Thomas So Shiu-tsung urged the government to clarify how dual-licensed fertility clinics were regulated and called for an official co-ordination system to eliminate regulatory blind spots.
He explained that certain fertility centres were currently subject to different regulations by the council and the Department of Health under two separate licences.
But the two regulatory systems did not fully align on reporting incidents, handling emergencies or conducting follow-up inspections, So said.


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Hong Kong society

More checks for embryo biopsies, overhaul reproductive tech law, DAB urges

A lawmaker from Hong Kong’s largest political party has said the current mandatory two-person verification process does not cover every stage of embryo biopsy handling. Photo: May Tse

Heal Fertility was earlier told to suspend most operations after it was discovered that embryo biopsy specimens sent for genetic testing belonged to the wrong parents. Photo: Jelly Tse

Lawmaker Nixie Lam Lam has also argued that the existing legislation governing human reproductive technology fails to keep pace with modern medical technology. Photo: Handout

IVF clinic worker ‘lied to cover up embryo specimen mix-up, fled Hong Kong’ for Malaysia

Heal Fertility says it set up an internal task force to review and improve its procedures following the mix-up. Photo: Jelly Tse

Professor Raymond Liang briefs the media on the embryo biopsy specimens mix-up on July 7 as Dr Joanna Leung (left) from the Department of Health and council member Professor William Yeung look on. Photo: Sun Yeung

Parent company of Hong Kong IVF clinic says sorry for embryo specimen mix-up

Heal Fertility has also been criticised for its delayed reporting of the incidents. Photo: Jelly Tse

Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau earlier said the incident involved the swapping and replacement of embryo biopsy specimens, which could not be explained by simple procedural errors. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Embryo specimen mix-up: what happened and how is IVF regulated in Hong Kong?

Heal Fertility has mishandled embryo biopsy specimens from two patients and failed to promptly report the incident to health authorities. Photo: Jelly Tse

From 2020 to 2024, a total of 25,444 women turned to reproductive technology, such as IVF, according to the council. Photo: May Tse

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Hong Kong

Health & Environment

Call for action comes nearly a month after regulatory body suspended most operations at fertility clinic over specimen mix-ups


Call for action comes nearly a month after regulatory body suspended most operations at fertility clinic over specimen mix-ups.


More checks for embryo biopsies, overhaul reproductive tech law, DAB urges

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Call for action comes nearly a month after regulatory body suspended most operations at fertility clinic over specimen mix-ups

Call for action comes nearly a month after regulatory body suspended most operations at fertility clinic over specimen mix-ups