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A senior embryologist at West Coast Fertility Centers in Fountain Valley, California, adds media to petri dishes containing embryos, before freezing them, on February 29.
CNN
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Senate Republicans voted Thursday to block a bill introduced by Democrats that would guarantee access to in vitro fertilization nationwide.
The legislation failed to advance in a procedural vote by a count of 48-47. 60 votes were needed to advance. Republicans criticized the Democrat-led legislation as unnecessary overreach and a political show vote.
“Why should we vote for a bill that solves a non-existent problem? No problem. There are no restrictions on in vitro fertilization, nor should there be,” Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas told reporters.
The vote is part of a broader effort by Senate Democrats to draw a contrast with Republicans on reproductive health care in the run-up to the November elections. Democrats are highlighting the issue this month, which marks the two-year anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Wade.
“Today, women and families across America are concerned about more than the death of Roe. They are worried about what comes next, including the erosion of reproductive freedoms that no one thought were at risk. This includes access to services like in vitro fertilization,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said earlier this week in remarks on the Senate floor.
Biden lashed out at Senate Republicans after the vote.
“Once again, Senate Republicans have refused to protect access to fertility treatments for women desperately trying to get pregnant,” Biden said in a written statement. “And last week, Senate Republicans blocked national birth control protections. Disrespect for a woman’s right to make these decisions for herself and her family is outrageous and unacceptable.”
Republicans criticized the Democrat-led legislation as unnecessary overreach and a political show vote.
The legislation the Senate will pass – the Right to IVF Act – would enshrine in federal law the right of individuals to receive IVF treatment, as well as the right of doctors to provide treatment, which would nullify any attempts at the state level to restrict access.
The bill aims to make IVF treatment more affordable by requiring coverage for fertility treatments under employer-sponsored insurance and certain public insurance plans. It would also expand coverage of fertility treatments, including in vitro fertilization, under the health care of U.S. military personnel and veterans.
The IVF legislative package was introduced by Democratic Senators Patty Murray of Washington state, Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Cory Booker of New Jersey.
The vote comes after the Alabama Supreme Court said, in an unprecedented ruling earlier this year, that frozen embryos are children and those who destroy them can be held liable for wrongful death – a decision that reproductive rights advocates have warned could have a frightening effect on infertility treatments.
While the state legislature has taken steps aimed at protecting IVF in the wake of the ruling, Democrats argue this is just one example of how access to reproductive health care is under threat across the country.
Southern Baptist delegates, for example, expressed alarm on Wednesday about the way in vitro fertilization is being routinely practiced, passing a resolution lamenting that the creation of surplus frozen embryos often results in the “destruction of embryonic human life.” ”.
IVF vote is the latest movement by Democrats to present a bill that is expected to be blocked by Republicans. Last week, Senate Republicans voted to block a Democrat-led bill that would guarantee access to contraception.
Most Republicans rejected the effort as an unnecessary and overly broad political message vote, although Republican Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine crossed over to vote with Democrats in favor of advancing the bill.
Republicans have introduced their own bills on in vitro fertilization and contraception. Republican Senators Katie Britt of Alabama and Ted Cruz of Texas have introduced a bill called the IVF Protection Act, and Republican Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa has introduced a separate bill to promote access to contraception .
Cruz and Britt attempted to pass their IVF legislation on the Senate floor Wednesday through a unanimous consent request, but Democrats blocked the effort.
Murray, who opposed the request, criticized the GOP bill, arguing that states could “enact burdensome and unnecessary requirements and create the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that would force clinics to close their doors again.”
Under Britt and Cruz’s IVF bill, states would not be eligible for Medicaid funding if they prohibited access to IVF, but the legislation “allows states to implement health and safety standards relating to practice of in vitro fertilization,” according to a press release.
This story and headline have been updated with additional developments.
CNN’s Sam Fossum and Morgan Rimmer contributed to this report.
