Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked for a second time a Democratic bill that would have created a federal right to IVF and guaranteed insurance coverage for IVF and other fertility treatments.
Republicans blocked the same bill in June, so the outcome was all but certain. As in June, Republicans denounced it as a sham vote. Only Republican Sens. Susan Collins (Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) joined the Democrats in voting.
But the vote, less than two months before the election, was aimed at bringing the issue back to the forefront of voters' minds and highlighting Republican opposition to in vitro fertilization and other reproductive rights.
Key takeaways from the legislative encore include:
Democrats continue their offensive
Democrats are focusing on IVF in the run-up to the November elections, and Tuesday's vote showed they intend to continue to go after Republicans hard.
Democratic leaders decided to put the bill back to a vote after former President Trump called for universal coverage of in vitro fertilization treatments, without providing details.
The fact that this vote was the second in less than three months shows how vulnerable Democrats believe Republicans are on this issue.
“We've seen Republicans waver on their support for IVF. They say they support access to IVF, they support insurance payment for IVF treatment, they support helping families pay for IVF, and then when the time comes they vote no,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
Democrats say the ongoing threat to IVF is a direct result of the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade more than two years ago, a decision that Republicans and President Trump are responsible for.
Republicans support in vitro fertilization but say they oppose the bill because it is unnecessary and an expansion of legislative power.
Republicans have struggled with their messaging on IVF since the Alabama Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that frozen fertilized eggs are considered human beings, causing several clinics across the state, including the state's largest health system, to suspend IVF procedures for fear of legal repercussions.
Many Republicans, including Trump, condemned the ruling, but anti-abortion and religious groups supported it and blasted Republicans who spoke out.
Cruz tries to deflect blame
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a staunch anti-abortion Republican, tried to deflect some of the Democratic attacks by pointing to an IVF bill he co-sponsored with Sen. Katie Britt (R-Alabama).
Cruz is running for reelection against well-funded Democratic Rep. Collin Allred of Texas, who has attacked Cruz for his anti-abortion positions, which she says endanger access to in vitro fertilization.
Cruz's attempt was blocked by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), who said that under the expedited unanimous consent process, any single senator could object to passage of a bill.
“After I ask for the concurrence, a Democratic senator will stand up and begin to speak. As she begins to speak, you should listen for two magic words: 'I oppose.' If Democrats say 'I oppose,' this bill will be defeated,” he said.
Murray denounced Cruz's bill as an “empty gesture” that doesn't address the issue of fetal personhood, a top concern for IVF providers in Alabama, who suspended their services earlier this year.
The bill would prevent states from banning IVF, but would allow states to regulate it, which could have a negative impact on access to IVF.
Reproductive health advocates say a total ban on IVF in the future is unlikely: Even Alabama has not banned the procedure since the ruling.
Trump won't get involved in Senate fight
The former president, who described himself as a “fertilizer leader” during a debate with Vice President Harris, did not speak about either bill.
The Democratic bill essentially mirrors Trump's IVF pledges during the election campaign, and Democrats said the vote was an opportunity for Republicans to back up their case.
“If Republicans are serious about supporting IVF and President Trump's promises to help families afford IVF are not just high-level rhetoric, then there is no reason why we can't get this bill passed,” Murray said at a press conference before the vote.
Other Democrats argued that Trump simply had to speak out on social media and Republicans would follow suit. But he didn't.
Trump's appeal was aimed squarely at the moderate women who turned their backs on his campaign, but his pledge surprised many Republicans and risked alienating pro-small government conservatives who oppose the cost and federal mandate, as well as religious conservatives who oppose the way IVF is currently performed in the country.
“Trump has a problem. He has absolutely solidified and incited his extremist supporters and wants them to work for him, but at the same time he realizes that the policies they are promoting are deeply unpopular in this country,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., told reporters on Tuesday.
“So he says two completely contradictory things and hopes that neither side will listen to what he has to say.”
For Republicans, IVF is safer than abortion
Supporting access to IVF is a broadly bipartisan issue and carries less risk for Republicans than debating abortion policy.
Majority of Americans support IVF over abortion, survey data shows Pew Research Center The survey found that more than two-thirds of Americans say having access to IVF is a “good thing,” while fewer than one in 10 Republicans think it's a “bad thing.”
Harris's claim to the Democratic nomination gives Republicans less room to ignore reproductive issues, and her talk of IVF gives Republicans a platform to shift their focus away from abortion.
But Republican weaknesses remain, particularly when it comes to the personhood of unborn children: Many Republicans seem to agree that unborn children are children with equal rights.
Murray on Tuesday pressed Cruz to explain the Republican plan for unimplanted embryos created during IVF, which are typically discarded as a medical procedure if they are non-viable, have genetic abnormalities or the patient does not want to have more children.
Fertility experts have warned that treating these embryos as the same as children could be ethically and legally difficult to implement.
Senator Cruz never uttered the word “fetus” when responding to Senator Murray on the Senate floor, and accused Democrats of being “cynical” and “trying to scare voters” with the bill.
