Alabama lawmakers pass IVF immunity bills

(CN) — The Alabama Legislature passed a pair of identical bills aimed at jump-starting in vitro fertilization procedures in the state on Thursday, nearly two weeks after a state supreme court ruling defined frozen embryos as “children,” and made the destruction of such embryos — whether accidental or intentional — punishable under the Alabama Wrongful Death of a Minor Act.

The ruling led fertility clinics across the state to pause services.

Earlier Thursday, the House of Representatives passed a bill by Republican State Representative Terri Collins to “provide civil and criminal immunity for death or damage to an embryo to any individual or entity when providing or receiving goods or services related to in vitro fertilization.” A separate but similar bill, sponsored by Republican State Senator Tim Melson, passed through the Senate later in the afternoon. 

Each bill now moves to the opposite chamber for debate. Collins said they are aiming to get the measure approved and to the governor on Wednesday.

Collins said the language of her bill, which passed by a vote of 94-6, was what the IVF industry requested to reboot programs that were canceled or paused after the court ruling.  

“We have been told this will open the clinics and that has been our goal,” she said. “But I believe we should also continue to work on this issue long term.” 

Melson’s bill sailed through the Senate without opposition, passing by a vote of 34-0. While both bills were originally written to sunset in 2025, such deadlines were stripped from the final versions, with Melson citing the discouraging effect it could have had on patients who were considering IVF treatment within the next year. 

State Representative Chris England, a Democrat, voted in favor of the House bill but added that the issue remains ripe for clarification. 

“This immunity bill in and of itself is requiring us to be morally ambiguous and intellectually dishonest at the same time,” England said. “Instead of fixing the law, we are protecting the ruling.”

“In Alabama, for all intents and purposes, life begins at conception, and in our constitution embryos have a right to life,” he continued. “We’re not offering a solution. We’re offering a remedy.”

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