Senate Republicans block IVF protection bill. JD Vance didn’t even show up for the vote.

Senate Republicans blocked a bill that would have created a right to access in vitro fertilization (IVF) and required insurance companies to cover IVF. Republicans accused Democrats of pushing the bill as a political move, as IVF has proven to be a contentious topic in this election cycle.

Both Donald Trump and his running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), have said that they support IVF, with Trump even saying that he wants the government or insurance companies to be required to cover the procedure. After the vote, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) wrote on X, “Despite Donald Trump’s claims that he wants IVF to be covered, Senate Republicans just blocked my Right to IVF Act for the second time—legislation that would have done exactly that.”

Related:

A couple’s fight over frozen embryos could upend IVF access in Texas

The case is no doubt part of the predicted “domino effect” stemming from the Alabama Supreme Court’s ruling declaring embryos as legal children.

The “Right to IVF” bill failed in a 51-44 vote, with all Republicans voting against advancing the bill. This is the second time an IVF vote has failed due to Republican lawmakers. Sixty votes were needed to overcome the filibuster.

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Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) voted with every Democrat and independent. Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ), Joe Manchin (I-WV), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Mike Rounds (R-SD) did not vote.  Neither, notably, did Vance.

Campaign manager for the Harris-Walz campaign Julie Chávez Rodríguez said in a statement, “Donald Trump’s running mate couldn’t even bother to show up for today’s Senate vote. While Donald Trump and J.D. Vance are off spreading conspiracy theories or taking another opportunity to insult childless women and couples struggling with fertility, Kamala Harris is fighting for all of our freedoms, all of our families, and our access to healthcare.”

GOP senators said that the vote was simply a show vote, accusing Democrats of misrepresenting Republicans’ views on IVF.

“Let’s be clear — there is not a single senator in this chamber on either side of the aisle who wants to ban IVF,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said on the floor ahead of the votes.

“Their official platform would ban IVF and abortion nationwide, and their record tells the same story,” Chávez Rodríguez said. “J.D. Vance insults women struggling with fertility, voted against IVF access the last time it came to the floor, and Donald Trump appointed an anti-IVF extremist to the federal bench. If they win this November, they’ll go even further to rip away Americans’ choices and freedoms.”

IVF is an important form of family health for queer people, many of whom cannot build their families without the assistance of reproductive treatments.  A 2024 Family Equality Council survey found that 77 percent of LGBTQ+ millennials are either already parents or considering becoming parents, and a significant number rely on assisted reproductive technologies such as IVF.

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