No need to ban ultrasound doctors from announcing the gender of the fetus

On the morning of October 12, the National Assembly's Committee on Culture and Society held a plenary session to review the draft Law on Population and Law on Disease Prevention, drafted by the Ministry of Health.

No need to ban ultrasound doctors from announcing the gender of the fetus

At the meeting, regarding solutions to reduce gender imbalance at birth, Professor Nguyen Anh Tri said that the draft Population Law proposed a regulation "to suspend ultrasound doctors from announcing the gender of the fetus to customers, which can be written but never implemented".

Neonatal care at Duc Giang General Hospital, Hanoi

TLBV PHOTO

According to Professor Tri, families wait and want to know whether they will have a boy or a girl, to be happy and to prepare, they love every child. As for the ultrasound doctor announcing the gender, it is a private announcement, so how can they know? And the doctor said that it is a professional matter, so there is no need for a regulation prohibiting the ultrasound doctor from announcing the gender of the fetus.

"It is necessary to ban abortion for the purpose of choosing the fetus's gender; prohibit doctors from performing abortion for the purpose of choosing the fetus' gender; these are acts that cause gender imbalance at birth," Professor Tri emphasized.

Regarding the ban on doctors announcing the gender of the fetus, the Ministry of Health said that it is one of the regulations to reduce gender imbalance at birth. The draft Population Law proposes to suspend medical practitioners who announce, notify, or disclose information about the gender of the fetus to customers, except for cases of determining the gender for the purpose of diagnosing and treating genetic diseases related to gender according to regulations of the Ministry of Health. The suspension of practice is carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law on medical examination and treatment.

Regarding regulations to reduce gender imbalance at birth and bring the sex ratio at birth back to a natural balance, the draft Population Law has new additional contents including: prohibiting the selection of fetal sex in any form, except for cases of determining sex for the purpose of diagnosing and treating genetic diseases related to sex; suspending medical practitioners who publish, notify, or disclose information about fetal sex to customers, except for cases of diagnosing and treating genetic diseases related to sex according to regulations of the Ministry of Health .

The Ministry of Health assessed that the gender imbalance at birth has become a challenge, always at a high level. In 2006, the sex ratio at birth was 109.8 boys/100 live birth girls, exceeding the natural balance threshold (103 - 107 boys/100 girls); in 2015 it was 112.8.

According to data published in April 2025, in the first National Report on Civil Registration and Statistics for the period 2021 - 2024 (April 2025), in the period 2021 - 2024, the sex ratio at birth in our country is 109.8 boys/100 girls. In 2024 alone, this ratio is 110.7 boys/100 girls.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/khong-can-cam-bac-si-sieu-am-thong-bao-gioi-tinh-thai-nhi-185251012102406403.htm