Republican senators claim to support IVF but voted against advancing bill to protect it

Ever since the Alabama Supreme Court issued a ruling in February declaring that embryos created via in vitro fertilization (IVF) should be considered children and that those who destroy them could be held liable for wrongful death, Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, have repeatedly voiced their support for the procedure.

But on Sept. 17, when asked to vote to advance legislation that would guarantee federal protection for fertility treatments, including IVF, all Republican senators present except Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted against it.

This is the second time Democrats put forward the Right to IVF Act. The vote of 51-44 was nine votes short of the 60 needed simply to begin negotiations on the measure. Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, Trump’s vice presidential running mate, voted against the bill in June and was absent for the latest vote. The June vote was 48-47 against advancing it.

“Republicans already showed they will not stand up for Americans who want to start or grow a family when they blocked protections for IVF today — a vote Donald Trump’s own running mate J.D. Vance skipped,” DNC spokesperson Aida Ross said in a statement.

“Donald Trump’s running mate couldn’t even bother to show up for today’s Senate vote,” said Julie Chávez Rodríguez, the campaign manager for Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. “While Donald Trump and J.D. Vance are off spreading conspiracy theories or taking another opportunity to insult childless women and couples struggling with fertility, Kamala Harris is fighting for all of our freedoms, all of our families, and our access to health care.”

Democrats aimed for the vote on the bill, authored by Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, to put Republicans on the record for their lack of support for reproductive rights. Republicans have accused Democrats of political gamesmanship, saying the bill is unnecessary because IVF is legal in every state. 

In an interview with NPR, Duckworth said she agreed with a statement by Trump that IVF should be covered by the federal government and insurance companies should be mandated to cover it, but that it is unlikely to happen because some states have fetal personhood laws in place that would make such coverage illegal. 

“You can cover it all you want, but if there is nobody to perform the procedure then you don’t have access to it. So his argument is really a red herring and it’s meant to fool and deceive the general public, which is a disservice to Americans,” Duckworth said.

According to a brief from Pregnancy Justice, a national advocacy organization that defends the civil and legal rights of pregnant people, there are at least 11 states with “extremely broad personhood language that could affect state laws.”

Over two-thirds of Americans support access to IVF, according to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center.

While Republicans have said they support IVF, experts say their own policy platform says otherwise.“We proudly stand for families and Life,” the GOP platform says. “We believe that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees that no person can be denied Life or Liberty without Due Process and that the States are, therefore, free to pass Laws protecting those rights.”

Mary Ziegler, a professor at the University of California Davis School of Law, explained that if the 14th Amendment were interpreted to mean that fetuses and embryos have the full rights of American citizens, any laws that guarantee access to abortion, birth control, and IVF could be overridden — even those supported by a majority of voters. In March, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed a bill into law protecting IVF providers and patients from legal liability.