Should donors have the right to decide who receives their gametes?

A continuing feature of gamete donation is the scarcity of availabledonors. A strategy to improve the meagre supply of gametes wouldbe to adjust the donation procedure to the wishes and desiresof the donors. However, giving donors the right to direct theirgametes to certain groups of recipients goes against the generalrule that donors relinquish all rights and duties. Moreover,allocation by the donor might very well run counter to the rulesof distributional justice. On the other hand, the allocationright can be supported by the principle of autonomy and by thedonor's interest in and contribution to the process. The positionis taken that the donors should have the right to direct theirgametes to categories accepted as relevant by the moral andreligious communities in their society. They should not be giventhe right to add their own categories to the exclusion list.If donors are not allowed to allocate their gift, they shouldat least be informed as to which categories of recipient aretreated by the hospital to enable them to decide whether theywant to donate gametes.