Republicans Consider Immunity for Doctors in Response to Alabama's IVF Ruling

Alabama Republican lawmakers are considering giving immunity to doctors following the state's latest ruling on IVF that could prosecute those involved in the process.

The state's GOP-controlled legislature is scrambling to find ways to reach a compromise to restore access to in vitro fertilization following the state Supreme Court's ruling. The decision declared that frozen embryos are children and it forced clinics to pause operations.

Republicans Considering Immunity for Doctors Providing IVF

Under the newly proposed legislation on Tuesday afternoon, GOP members are proposing giving doctors who perform IVF immunity from civil and criminal prosecution. This would give clinics enough legal cover to resume providing services to customers.

However, the measure falls short of an earlier draft of the bill that said embryos created during the IVF process that are not implanted in the uterus should be considered a "potential life" but not "human life."

The one-and-a-half-page bill stated that no action, suit, or criminal prosecution shall be brought or maintained against any individual or entity that provides goods or services related to IVF. It noted that an exception was in place for an act or omission that is both intentional and not arising from or related to IVF services, as per Politico.

The proposal came a little more than a week after the Alabama Supreme Court's ruling on embryos under a state law on wrongful deaths of minors. This immediately led to three fertility clinics pausing operations and set off a national debate over IVF. It also challenges GOP lawmakers who are already struggling to win the messaging fight on abortion.

Alabama Republican Gov. Kay Ivey has already voiced her support for a fix of the situation that would allow IVF services to resume in the state. On Tuesday, she said that lawmakers are working diligently to address the issue and that she expects a bill to arrive on her desk shortly.

Addressing the Controversial Issue

The latest measure is set to sunset on Apr. 1, 2025, which means that it would only serve as a stopgap to allow clinics to restore services. Some also believe that the state will need a more permanent fix regarding the issue.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth introduced a new bill to protect access to IVF across the nation. On Tuesday morning, she spoke with Ari Shapiro about her own experience with fertility treatments, her attempts to build bipartisan support for her bill, and why she believes that state GOP lawmakers in Alabama are looking to pass legislation to protect IVF as simply a show, according to NPR.

Duckworth noted that it was not just Alabama families that were affected, arguing that people across the U.S. are not protected in terms of their access to reproductive healthcare. She accused Republicans across the country of working as hard as they could to give rights to fertilized eggs that are far greater than a living, breathing human being.

Terri Collins also sponsored House Bill 237, which mirrors Sen. Tim Melson's Senate Bill 159 in providing protections against criminal charges to people providing goods and services related to IVF, said CNN.