Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Senate Democrats Plan Speedy Action In Defense Of IVF Treatments
The 19th: Senate Democrats Aim For Expedited Vote To Protect IVF Access
Senate Democrats on Tuesday highlighted their plan to protect IVF, warning their Republican colleagues they will need to decide by Wednesday whether to block a bill that would preserve access to assisted reproductive technologies. (Becker and Davis, 2/27)
Axios Chicago: Sen. Tammy Duckworth Gets Personal In Push To Protect IVF
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) is sharing her fertility journey as part of a renewed push for legislation to ensure families have access to procedures like in vitro fertilization (IVF). (Shepherd, 2/27)
The Hill: Republican Circulating Nonbinding House Resolution To Support IVF
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) is circulating a nonbinding resolution to Democrats and Republicans expressing “strong support for continued access to fertility care” including in vitro fertilization. In an email sent to congressional offices, Mace’s legislative director said the resolution is being introduced “in light of the Alabama Supreme Court’s ruling which has jeopardized access to in vitro fertilization (IVF) for couples in the state of Alabama.” (Weixel, 2/27)
Axios: Biden's Next Move On IVF Protections May Be Limited
Fertility providers are talking with the Biden administration about possible steps it can take to ensure access to in vitro fertilization, while legal experts say the administration likely has some limited powers. (Goldman, 2/28)
Axios: Two-Thirds Signal Opposition To Alabama IVF Ruling: Axios-Ipsos Poll
Two-thirds of Americans oppose considering frozen embryos as people, with the issue rapidly resonating with Democrats already charged up by election-year messaging on reproductive rights, a new Axios-Ipsos poll finds. The findings suggest the Alabama Supreme Court decision on in vitro fertilization goes well beyond where public sentiment is in the post-Roe world. (Bettelheim, 2/28)
Updates from Alabama —
Politico: Alabama Republicans Want To Give IVF Doctors Immunity After Court Rules Frozen Embryos Are Kids
Alabama’s GOP-controlled legislature is scrambling to strike a compromise to restore access to in vitro fertilization after a recent state Supreme Court decision declaring that frozen embryos are children forced clinics to pause operations. Under state legislation introduced Tuesday afternoon, Republican lawmakers propose giving doctors who perform in vitro fertilization immunity from civil and criminal prosecution to give clinics enough legal cover to resume providing services. The measure, however, falls short of an earlier draft of the bill that said embryos created during the IVF process that aren’t implanted in the uterus should be considered a “potential life” but not “human life.” (Messerly, 2/27)
USA Today: Biden's Top Health Expert Travels To Alabama To Hear From IVF Families
The Biden Administration dispatched its top healthcare expert here on Tuesday to meet with fertility doctors and families undergoing in vitro fertilization, days after the Alabama Supreme Court effectively halted the treatment in the state. After meeting with affected families, federal Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra noted that the court's decision was possible only because the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022 overturned Roe vs. Wade and permitted states to ban abortions. (Hagan and Hughes, 2/27)
Also —
Reuters: Florida Lawmakers Pause 'Unborn Child' Bill In Wake Of Alabama Ruling
Florida lawmakers have paused efforts to pass a bill that would have provided protections to an "unborn child," but which some worry could expose the state's in vitro fertilization (IVF) clinics to lawsuits like one that happened this month in Alabama. Florida state Senator Erin Grall said in an emailed statement on Tuesday that she had requested her bill "be temporarily postponed at this time." (Brooks, 2/27)
Kansas City Star: Missouri Abortion Rights Amendment Would Also Protect IVF
A proposed Missouri abortion rights ballot measure would protect access to in vitro fertilization, supporters and experts say, after an Alabama court decision declaring that frozen embryos are children has led to fears the fertility treatment could be in danger. (Shorman, Bayless and Desrochers, 2/28)
