If GOP agrees that IVF needs legal protection, why not work with Sen. Duckworth on a bill?
Republicans have been tripping over each other to voice support for in vitro fertilization since the conservative Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are children. IVF clinics in Alabama put treatments on hold as doctors and patients weigh their legal risks, rightfully worried they could face criminal prosecution or civil suits if embryos are damaged or destroyed.
State lawmakers in Alabama are now looking at changing the law there to protect IVF treatments. Donald Trump made clear over the weekend that he would “strongly support the availability of IVF.” The National Republican Senatorial Committee is advising candidates on the campaign trail to “clearly state your support for IVF and fertility-related services as blessings for those seeking to have children.”
Better yet, the GOP should work with U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat from Illinois who for years has co-sponsored reproductive health bills, including IVF, to establish federal legal protections for IVF treatments.
On Sunday, Duckworth told ABC News “This Week” she hasn’t heard from Republicans since the ruling. “It’s been crickets,” she said. No surprise there.
The Alabama ruling is a consequence of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade, an outcome that Republicans should have seen coming. Abortion rights advocates certainly did.
Some groups who are antiabortion had high praise for the Alabama court’s decision. They are out of touch with much of America.
For decades, people struggling with infertility or illness as well as LGBTQ folks — Republicans and Democrats alike — have turned to in vitro fertilization. Former vice president Mike Pence, an ultraconservative, and his wife started their family through IVF. Duckworth had two daughters through IVF.
According to Pew Research Center survey results published in September, 42% of adults said they had turned to fertility treatments or knew someone who had, up from 33% in 2018. It’s easy to expect that percentage to continue to rise. Most people, 61%, said health insurance should cover the cost of fertility treatments.
A federal law would give generations of would-be moms and dads across the country peace of mind to know they could turn to IVF without fears of criminal prosecution in the future, in Alabama or elsewhere across the country. On “This Week,” Duckworth sounded ready and willing to work with the GOP, which needs more than just rhetoric on this issue. It needs to move on a law.