With less than 50 days until the election, Senate Democrats are trying to put Republicans — and Trump — in the hot seat on IVF.
On Tuesday, Senate Democrats brought the Right to IVF Act to a second vote, just 3 months after Republicans in the chamber first shot it down. The bill aims to make it a nationwide right to both receive and provide in vitro fertilization services and includes provisions to make it cheaper.
But Senate Republicans quickly voted to block the bill, which they have previously argued is too broad.
A spokesperson for JD Vance, the Ohio senator tapped as Trump’s VP running mate, blasted Democrats for what he called “political games.”
“President Trump and Senator Vance have made themselves crystal clear: They fully support guaranteed IVF access for every American family,” said spokesperson Taylor Van Kirk in a statement to Business Insider. “It’s unfortunate that Chuck Schumer chose to play political games with the Senate’s time instead of working to bring down the crushing inflation that Kamala Harris created.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a letter to colleagues that the decision to reintroduce the bill was influenced by Trump’s own recent endorsements of IVF, CBS News reported. It was an apparent attempt to pressure Trump to stand by his promise to support IVF and urge his Republican colleagues to vote in favor.
In last week’s debate against Kamala Harris, the former president called himself a “leader on IVF.” And in August, Trump told NBC News that if reelected, he would protect the right to IVF and get the costs covered for Americans who need it.
But Democrats have accused Trump of making false promises, using statements from his running mate, Vance, that disparaged women without children and supported abortion bans to allege Trump won’t follow through with his campaign vow.
Before Tuesday’s vote, Democrats argued that if Trump wanted to follow through on that promise, all he needed to do was say the word.
“If Donald Trump and Republicans want to protect people’s right to access IVF, they can vote yes on it,” Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth, who sponsored the legislation, told CBS News. “He’s shown that it only takes one sentence from him, and the Republican Party will fall in line behind him.”
Trump’s campaign said Vance and his fellow Republicans see a number of “questionable provisions” with the legislation and would make it harder for families to sue clinics that mishandle embryos.
Vance did not vote on the bill, which failed to move forward by a 51-44 vote, failing to hit the 60-vote threshold to get past a filibuster.
On top of that, Trump and Republicans were likely wary of handing Democrats a win so close to the election, even on an issue they’ve previously pledged to support.
After Alabama ruled in February that embryos can be considered children — threatening IVF procedures in the state — Republicans quickly rallied around access to IVF, despite their past stances to the contrary. Trump jumped in to voice his support of the procedure, and by May, two GOP senators were introducing a package to protect IVF access, though Democrats rejected it, arguing it didn’t go far enough.
Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris took the time on Tuesday to criticize Republicans’ decision, writing in a statement that, “Republicans in Congress have once again made clear that they will not protect access to the fertility treatments many couples need to fulfill their dream of having a child.”
