Laws about donor insemination vary from state to state, and are often changing. For example, some states have statutes in place specifically indicating that sperm donors are not considered to be the legal father of any child born through their donation as long as the donor’s sperm was given directly to a physician, and not to the recipient directly. In addition, many of these same statutes explicitly apply only to married women, thus making it much more difficult for either single women or lesbian couples to protect themselves from a donor’s attempt at establishing paternity.