re: IVF is about to be screwed

quote:

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Do they get social security numbers issued at fertilization? Are they considered dependents at tax time?

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Probably not since those sort of logistical issues aren't really relevant to whether or not a pre-born baby is actually a living person.

A child in the womb 5 minutes before birth won't have its own birth certificate, nor be included as a dependent on its parents' tax returns, yet is no less a living human being than it would be 5 minutes after birth (which, due to timing, would also not have its own birth certificate nor likely be listed on its parents tax forms in that moment, since those things come later).