Senate Dems vow to pass IVF Act despite GOP efforts

The Senate will conduct a procedural vote Thursday on the IVF Act, which aims to “protect and expand access” to in vitro fertilization services nationwide. This act is a response to a February 2024 ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court that led hospitals in the state to temporarily pause IVF services. 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced Wednesday that the vote would occur on Thursday. 

“Just a few years ago, it would have been unthinkable, unimaginable even that access to a safe and widely used reproductive service like IVF would be put at risk. But sadly, after frightening decisions, like the one from Alabama, not even IVF is safe in the aftermath of Roe,” he said.

The procedural vote is not anticipated to pass as all 49 Senate Republicans issued a collective statement asserting that Democrats are resorting to “scare tactics.” 

“Senate Democrats have embraced a Summer of Scare Tactics — a partisan campaign of false fearmongering intended to mislead and confuse the American people. In vitro fertilization is legal and available in every state across our nation. We strongly support continued nationwide access to IVF, which has allowed millions of aspiring parents to start and grow their families,” the Republican senators said in a joint statement.

Supporters of the IVF Act argue that it would establish a “statutory right” for individuals to access IVF services, and authorize the Department of Justice to enforce those rights. The act would also “increase affordability of fertility care, including IVF, by requiring employer-sponsored insurance plans and other public insurance plans to cover fertility treatments,” proponents say.

“For decades, millions of women have used IVF to start or grow their families and make their dreams come true,” said Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia. “It’s clear that lawmakers and judges across the country won’t stop at banning abortion — we’re witnessing a broad-scale attack on reproductive freedom that includes access to assisted reproductive technology and contraception, too. I’m glad to be standing up to these attacks by introducing the Right to IVF Act and other comprehensive measures to protect reproductive care.”

Republican Sens. Katie Britt and Ted Cruz in May introduced more narrowly crafted legislation that would make states that ban IVF procedures ineligible for Medicaid funding. Britt and Cruz mentioned that Democrats have obstructed their proposal. 

In February, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in favor of a group of couples who sued a hospital that had their frozen embryos at the time they were destroyed.

The couples sued the hospital under Alabama’s Wrongful Death of a Minor Act. The court ruled that the act applies to all children, born and unborn, and without limitation. The state has since enacted legislation protecting IVF rights, essentially negating the state Supreme Court ruling.