A measure that would provide federal protection for in vitro fertilization (IVF) has fizzled, after Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R–Miss.) blocked a bid to pass it by unanimous consent. The bill, introduced by Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D–Ill.), was designed to address uncertainty about fertility treatments in a post-Roe world.
Many doctors—and patients—are worried that anti-abortion laws could be used to block IVF treatments or at least criminalize elements of them. For instance, fetal personhood laws, which state that life begins at conception, could be used to criminalize the discarding of unused embryos. And even in the absence of explicit bans, personhood laws or other anti-abortion statutes could put a chill on the provision of fertility treatments.
