Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says he supports IVF access, but calls topic 'very complicated'

ByJacob Rascon KTRK logo

Monday, February 26, 2024

Gov. Abbott says he supports IVF, but calls topic 'very complicated'

The governor stopped short of calling for a new law to protect IVF in Texas. This comes as Alabama has halted treatments after its Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are children.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott is voicing his support for in vitro fertilization.

It comes after Alabama's state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are children -- halting IVF treatments at clinics in Alabama because it means discarding frozen embryos, which is a standard part of IVF treatment, could lead to criminal charges for wrongful death.

While Abbott stopped short of calling for a new law to protect IVF, he did say Texans should have access to it.

Abbott echoed former president Donald Trump, who said we should make it easier to have children and not harder, expressing his general support for IVF.

He acknowledged he doesn't have many answers for the questions brought up by the recent Alabama Supreme Court ruling, adding he doesn't know how many frozen embryos there are in Texas.

Abbott said he has no doubt that the Texas legislature will take up the issue, which he called "very complex."

In an interview with CNN's Dana Bash on "State of the Union" Sunday, he said Texas "is a pro-life state," and said "we want to ensure we promote life" and "empower parents."

"The IVF process is a way of giving life to even more babies. So what I think the goal is, is to make sure that we can find a pathway to ensure that parents who otherwise may not have the opportunity to have a child will be able to have access to the IVF process and become parents and give life to babies," Abbott said.

Alabama's biggest hospitals says it's putting all IVF treatment on hold after a recent ruling by the state's supreme court.

Meanwhile, lawmakers in Alabama are now trying to draft legislation to protect access to the treatments.

IVF offers a possible solution when someone has trouble getting pregnant. It involves retrieving eggs and combining them in a lab dish with sperm to create a fertilized embryo, which is then transferred into the uterus in an attempt to create a pregnancy.

IVF is done in cycles and may take more than one to create a successful pregnancy, according to The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. The procedure can use a couple's eggs and sperm or those from a donor.