00:00Five years ago, Danielle Bopping wanted to grow her own family.
00:06She turned to IVF, but says her dreams for a child were dashed.
00:11We don't choose to do IVF unless we have to.
00:15And we have no choice but to trust the medical professionals.
00:18Miss Bopping gave her last remaining embryo to Monash IVF for testing, but the results
00:24showed the embryo wasn't viable.
00:26It later emerged the company's new, non-invasive testing method was inaccurate, and a decision
00:32to discard the embryo may have been a tragic mistake.
00:36I was angry, I was hurt, I was confused.
00:39I just kept questioning, like, how could this happen?
00:42Miss Bopping wasn't the only one, and more than 700 women from around the country took
00:47the company to court.
00:49Today, it agreed to a $56 million settlement.
00:53This has had real, lasting, devastating impacts on people's mental health.
00:59The women also alleged Monash IVF destroyed embryos without consent, that signatures had
01:05been forged, and that one scientist burned documents.
01:09It is not OK in the name of scientific innovation to use clients, paying clients and patients
01:16as guinea pigs.
01:18As part of its settlement, Monash IVF has made no admissions of liability.
01:23In a statement it said,
01:24We acknowledge this case has been challenging for many people, and we regret any distress
01:29or hurt that may have been experienced.
01:32The company has stopped using the embryo testing method at the centre of the case.
01:36The next step is for the Supreme Court to approve the settlement, and that could be
01:40a complicated process given the amount of money and people involved, and deductions
01:45will also need to be made for legal fees.
01:48There is a sense of closure, although it can never take away the pain and the trauma that
01:55so many of us have felt, but that hopefully it allows us to move forward.
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