Big Backlash Hits Octuplets Mom
Police in Los Angeles said today they're investigating death threats against Nadya Suleman, the mother of the octuplets. There's a growing backlash against her from people who resent that she's now given birth to 14 children through in-vitro fertilization while accepting public assistance to raise them. CBS News correspondent Sandra Hughes reports.
Nadya Suleman's octuplets are thriving, but anger is growing about how much it will cost to care for them. Taxpayers could have to pay for some of her hospital costs, which could run up to $1 million.
"We're doing a bailout and I think it's just outrageous," said Sherrie Rodriguez.
A family Web site was created to solicit outside donations. But they're also getting death threats, said her publicist in a radio interview.
"They refer to ripping out her uterus to running over her with automobiles or trucks," said publicist Michael Furtney on KNX radio.
Suleman now admits she gets $490 in food stamps and federal assistance for her three disabled children every month. She's already $50,000 in debt from student loans.
"I so look forward to the day when I'm not getting any kind of help with food stamps, which I believe will end right when I graduate," she said.
Suleman says she had six fertilized embryos implanted for each of her pregnancies. That's far more than professional guidelines, recommending no more than two for a woman younger than 35.
The fertility doctor who she says performed all the in-vitro fertilizations for her 14 children, Dr. Michael Kamrava, isn't talking.
Today there were reports he did in-vitro fertilization on a 49-year old woman now pregnant with quadruplets.
In the past decade, the percentage of births involving triplets or more has actually declined by five percent.
"As the IVF laboratory conditions have improved and our ability to select the proper embryos has improved, we have been able to transfer fewer embryos and still have higher pregnancy rates," said Dr. Karine Chung of USC.
Especially in California, with the country's highest concentration of fertility doctors, some say there is pressure on doctors to implant multiples to inflate their statistics.
Experts say America needs legal restrictions, like some European countries have.
"I really do think we need laws setting limits on the number of embryos implanted," said law professor Lori Andrews.
Chung added: "The difficult part on putting restrictions on the number of embryos transferred is that it will limit the ability of the physician and the couple to individualize the care."
But it's how to care for these 14 children that has so many concerned right now.