Access for Whom?
Cautiously optimistic about the Trump Administration’s Executive Order Expanding IVF, but concerned it’s just another way to determine who gets a family.
Dear Stork'd Family,
Yesterday evening, Trump signed an Executive Order “Expanding Access to Invitro Fertilization” to “ensure reliable access to IVF treatment, including by easing unnecessary statutory or regulatory burdens to make IVF treatment drastically more affordable.” The order provides 90 days for staff to make policy recommendations to lower the cost of IVF and make it more accessible. It does not, as of yet, include any concrete policy changes or action plans.
So many people texted me this news today - “this is great!”, or “At least there is this sliver of hope” and my favorite, “this benefits us” from a woman considering solo motherhood.
But does it?
Careful attention to the language in the Executive Order indicates to me that intended solo parents are likely excluded from access - the first sentence clearly telescopes how this administration views “families” and likely who will have access to using IVF as a tool to build theirs.
“Today, many hopeful couples dream of starting a family, but as many as one in seven are unable to conceive a child.”
For me, the word “couples” is glaring.
Make no mistake that this administration and its step brother Project 2025 is fighting for a very narrow definition of family - one that extends only to heterosexual married couples. Project 2025 defines the “right” family as a “mother, father and their children.” This roadmap to conservative nationalism which the Trump administration disavowed during the election and is now following closely – includes removing access to zero fault divorce, restricting access to birth control and possibly repealing gay marriage - all tools that enable us to shape our families in ways that mean the most to us.
So, does this order provide me, a solo mom, “support, awareness, and access to affordable fertility treatments can help these families navigate their path to parenthood with hope and confidence.” or is that support, awareness and access afforded only to those who fit what the “right” family should look like?
What’s more is that this access to IVF doesn’t comport with the fetal personhood legislation efforts that first took hold in Alabama this time last year. Defining an embryo as human and giving it the same rights as you and I have, are fundamentally in opposition to the very act of pursuing IVF.
For a refresher, check out my primer on fetal personhood and IVF from 2024:
As well as this post:
I am very very hopeful that policy changes include mandating all insurance providers cover care. I am very hopeful that this executive order catalyzes new innovations and investments in the fertility and family building industry - innovations that improve outcomes and decrease costs.
I am also hopeful that these policy changes will include fertility preservation efforts such as egg freezing and preservation before life saving treatment such as cancer treatments. And finally, I am hopeful that policy changes will include improvements to donor conception legislation.
Hopeful, but not holding my breath.
Right now, IVF is accessible only to the privileged few - those who are lucky enough to have have either great insurance or the financial resources to cover it. It’s also limited to those privileged enough to live near clinics and hospitals who provide quality care. It is absolutely time for that to change. Our families cannot be defined by whether or not we have the right insurance.
My fear is that while we are celebrating increased access under the assumption that it increases who gets care, we are instead going to witness a shift of priviledge to those whom this administration believes deserves care. Aka: access could very liked be afforded only to those who are in heterosexual marriages.
I hope for once this administration gets it right. If you too are on the edge of your seat, pay attention to Resolve and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine in the coming months, both are leaders in the fight for access to IVF and will be on top of analyzing (and hopefully even proposing) policy changes.
Stork’d family, please weigh in - are you hopeful or uncertain about this Executive Order?
Julia
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Things Gestating Around the Internet
What Does Trump’s Executive Order for I.V.F. Mean? - The New York Times
This article on “reunification therapy” was jaw dropping and heart breaking, WBUR
Amazed but not surprised - 70% of adult New Yorkers are unmarried
There is so much faith that goes into the IVF process and one of the things you must have faith in is that the clinic is tracking, storing and handling your genetic material properly. But what if they don’t? This Georgia woman is living the IVF nightmare - she was impregnated with someone else’ embryo
There is so much heart here in this post - to grieve and grow and nurture and evolve all at the same time. A definite read:
Join one woman’s exploration to discover the many modern ways people define and build family
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Absolutely no confidence this administration will do anything to benefit everyone who wants to start a family. If they do ease access to IVF, it will be only for straight white Christian married couples.
Incredibly unhopeful and honestly bummed when people tell me to take this as a "win"! Nothing legal here, just some words that might give some people hope that he's following a campaign promise. In this current climate, there is no way that this administration would want to extend access to anyone that isn't straight, white, cis, citizens etc. I appreciated Tammy Duckworth asking Congress to step up and vote to preserve IVF; if there's truly a political will, then let's see it in meaningful and legally enforceable laws! But I think she called their bluff. I will instead find my hope in federal judges that are standing up to this administration's harmful policies.