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Parents of switched babies compensated

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Parents of switched babies compensated
Photo: DPA

A clinic in Saarlouis has compensated the parents of two babies who were switched at birth in July 2007, according to media reports from the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate on Wednesday.

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The parties involved agreed to keep the amount of compensation and terms of their agreement secret, said spokesperson for Marienhaus GmbH, operator of the St. Elisabeth Clinic where the switch occurred. The parents and hospital reached an "amicable settlement," he said.

News of the July baby switch made national headlines in December. The two 7-month-old babies were returned to their biological parents in what they described as an emotional exchange at a secret location in late January.

At that time, the mother of one of the baby girls, 34-year-old Jeannine Klos told German news website Spiegel Online that she bore no anger toward the Elisabeth Clinic. "I felt I was in good hands. It is a mistake, and mistakes happen," she said.

One of the babies' fathers had become suspicious because his daughter did not resemble him, and asked for a DNA test, news agency AFP reported. Results showed that neither he or his wife were the child's parents. Fourteen subsequent DNA tests were required to determine the biological parents.

How the mistake occurred remains a mystery, and the clinic is under investigation by the Ministry of Health in Saarbrücken.

dpa/afp

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