Britain to pay women who donate eggs

The British government has approved a plan to compensate women who donate eggs for stem cell research, an action that scientists hope will improve the limited supply of eggs.

Women getting fertility treatments will receive a discount if they donate eggs for research, authorities said Wednesday. Others will receive up to about $490 for each fertilization cycle to cover costs such as travel or lost work time. The eggs would be used to create cloned embryos, with the hope of extracting stem cells. The U.S. allows payments to egg donors, but some states limit them to reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses.