WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats will attempt to pass a bill Thursday that would put in place nationwide protections on in-vitro fertilization (IVF), as the two-year anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade nears.
Democrats have been pushing for reproductive rights-focused bills before the anniversary, albeit unsuccessfully so far, in an effort to contrast themselves with Republicans ahead of the election.
Though Democrats are likely to be unified behind the IVF package introduced by Democratic Sens. Patty Murray of Washington, Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Cory Booker of New Jersey, Republicans have said they plan to oppose it.
“You never know, you don’t give up till the end,” Minnesota Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a co-sponsor of the bill, said in an interview ahead of the vote when asked about the bill’s chances of passing.
“We’re making this point like, ‘come on, if you say you’re for this, then be for it,'” Klobuchar continued, referring to Republicans. Fellow Minnesota Democratic Sen. Tina Smith also supports the legislation.
The bill would establish a statutory right for patients to access IVF, for providers to be able to provide IVF and for insurers to cover the procedure “without prohibition, limitation, interference or impediment.”
Last week, Senate Republicans blocked a bill that would have protected the right to contraception access, characterizing the legislation as a political maneuver by Democrats in an election year.
Senate Republicans also blocked similar IVF legislation led by Duckworth, which was brought forward in response to the Alabama Supreme Court’s ruling that frozen embryos should be considered children.
The 2022 Dobbs decision helped Democrats in the midterms that year and may have prevented Republicans’ chances of the red wave they had anticipated.
Aware of that vulnerability heading into 2024, the National Republican Senatorial Committee quickly called on GOP candidates to reject any government efforts to restrict IVF.
Republican Sens. Katie Britt of Alabama and Ted Cruz of Texas had introduced their own version of an IVF protections bill that would have barred states from receiving Medicaid funding if they banned access to IVF.
But Democrats said the GOP bill had loopholes that would have allowed states to restrict IVF and blocked the Republican-led legislation.
As in 2022, Klobuchar anticipates reproductive rights will again be a driving issue for voters at the polls.
“You could just sit back and say, ‘oh, we can’t pass this,’ no, you want to make as good a bill so you’re ready to go for the day when we can pass it,” Klobuchar said. “That’s what we’re doing with this.”
“And then you make it very clear which side you’re on when it comes to voting,” Klobuchar continued. “And eventually, you gain votes and that’s how you pass anything, and I do think it’ll be a major issue in the election.”
Meta Getman and Miraya Gran, two Minnesota mothers who underwent IVF, along with advocates from Resolve, a national infertility association, have been at the U.S. Capitol this week to meet with lawmakers and share their stories about the challenges they faced with accessing IVF.
Both were vocal in trying to pass legislation this session, which would have put requirements on insurers to cover infertility treatment, but the bill did not pass.
“I hope it’s an opportunity for anyone who’s in the opposition to really hear these stories of factual, real life, things that are happening in Americans’ lives,” Gran said.
“Regardless of the outcome, I’m incredibly grateful that the conversation around infertility and IVF is more public because so many people are suffering in silence and so many people feel so alone.” Getman said.
