The Future of Children, Princeton - Brookings: Providing research and analysis to promote effective policies and programs for children.

European countries are apparently much less aggressive than the United States in using neonatal intensive care and place greater emphasis on assuring prenatal care to prevent premature births and on rehabilitative and social services for handicapped survivors.⁴ Recommendations not to give neonatal intensive care have been made in Denmark for infants whose gestational age is below 25 or 26 weeks¹¹ and in Sweden for infants whose birth weight is below 600 grams.¹² In Australia, neonatal intensive care is typically not recommended below 25 weeks gestational age or 650 grams (1 pound, 7 ounces) birth weight; depending on the desires of the parents, neonatal intensive care may not be administered up to 800 grams (1 pound, 11 ounces) birth weight or 27 weeks gestational age.¹³ In less-well-developed countries, neonatal intensive care, if available at all, may be available only to infants weighing at least 1,000 grams (2 pounds, 3 ounces)¹⁴ or more.¹⁵

Outside North America, parents of premature infants tend to have a more passive role or no role at all in treatment decisions for premature infants.^12,14 Moreover, opposition to the involvement of ethics committees has been documented in a variety of countries.^12,14