Duckworth Reacts to Alabama Court IVF Ruling, Urges Colleagues to Help Pass Her Legislation to Protect Access to IVF

[WASHINGTON, DC] – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—lead sponsor of the Access to Family Building Act, which would protect every American’s right to access in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and other assisted reproductive technology (ART) services—issued the following statement after Alabama’s State Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created during the IVF process are “children” under state law, threatening access to IVF for those who need it to start or grow their family:

“Since the Supreme Court threw out Roe v. Wade, our nation has seen a wave of Republican-led states enacting strict abortion bans to severely limit their residents’ right to access basic reproductive care, leaving many hopeful parents—and those of us who relied on IVF to start and grow our own families—worried about whether access to these important technologies could be next. The ruling from the Alabama Supreme Court—effectively labeling women who undergo IVF as criminals and our doctors as killers—proves that we were right to be worried. No one looking to start or grow their family, in any state, deserves to be criminalized. Now is the time for Congress to pass my Access to Family Building Act and establish a statutory right to access IVF and other ART services for all Americans nationwide.”

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