Senate Republicans Block IVF Bill

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Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked legislation that would codify into federal law a right to in vitro fertilization.

The bill – S. 4445 – would have provided individuals with the right access to fertility treatments “without limitation or interference.” It also would have granted healthcare providers and insurers the right to provide and cover those services, regardless of state law.

Reproductive health and freedom took on added importance in Democratic politics after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade and the constitutional right to abortion in its ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The 2022 ruling came thanks in large part to former President Donald Trump, who appointed three of the justices who voted to overturn the 49-year-old precedent. In response, several states enacted various restrictions on abortion.

On the campaign trail, Trump has claimed he wants IVF treatments to be free. But given Tuesday’s Senate vote, there appears to be little interest among his fellow Republicans. The IVF bill failed to garner the necessary 60 votes to achieve cloture. Fifty-one senators voted in favor of cloture, 44 voted against it. All 44 nay votes were cast by Republicans. Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) were the only Republicans to vote in favor.

Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-SD) slammed the move by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to put the bill to a vote, calling it a “show vote.”

“Republicans support IVF, full stop,” he said. “This is not an attempt to make law. This is not an attempt to get an outcome or to legislate.

The senator said Democrats are seeking to “create a political issue where there isn’t one.”