Johnson dismisses need for IVF legislation as GOP wrestles with reproductive issues

By Melanie Zanona and Haley Talbot, CNN

Speaker Mike Johnson said Thursday that he does not believe Congress has a role to play when it comes to IVF legislation, as some members within the House Republican Conference have been pushing for in the wake of the controversial Alabama Supreme Court ruling.

“It’s not my belief that Congress needs to play a role here,” the Louisiana Republican told reporters at the annual Republican issues conference held at The Greenbrier, a resort in West Virginia. “I think this is being handled by the states.”

Johnson insisted his party supports access to IVF and said it is “something we ought to protect and preserve” but that it needs to be done “ethically and well.”

House Republicans will also hear from Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser on a “pro-family agenda” at the retreat later Thursday in West Virginia as their party struggles on abortion messaging.

In a remarkable split screen illustrating how the parties are handling the issue heading into November, Vice President Kamala Harris will visit a Planned Parenthood clinic in Minnesota also later Thursday, marking a significant and high-level visit to an abortion provider where she is expected to walk through the facility and speak with staff about reproductive rights.

Johnson is under pressure by some in his conference to do something to show support at least symbolically for access to IVF, following the ruling of the Alabama Supreme Court last month that frozen embryos are human beings and those who destroy them can be held liable for wrongful death. Three of the state’s limited pool of IVF providers immediately paused services, sending some families out of state to access treatment. Providers in Alabama have since resumed some in vitro fertilization services following the signing of a new law, but the developments launched the topic into the national discussion surrounding access reproductive health services and put many Republicans in an uncomfortable political position.

There are two Republican-led efforts in the House – one by Republican Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer of Oregon and another authored by Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina expressing support for IVF accessibility. Mace has introduced a non-binding resolution to express support for in vitro fertilization and condemn any judicial rulings or legislation that might restrict access to fertility treatments. She has been lobbying Johnson behind the scenes to put her bill on the floor and said she is even open to changing the measure in order for it to proceed.

The effort from DeRemer is a largely symbolic non-binding resolution aimed to “make it clear that IVF needs to be protected,” but it does not actually enshrine protections for IVF into law and amounts to more of a messaging tool. Chavez-DeRemer called on state legislatures to take action to support IVF access.

Democratic Rep. Susan Wild of Pennsylvania also introduced legislation that would prohibit restrictions on access to assisted reproductive technology. This effort has garnered the support of one Republican: Moderate Rep. Marc Molinaro of New York who recently signed onto the bill.

Last week, California GOP Rep. Michelle Steel removed herself as a co-sponsor of the Life at Conception Act “because it could create confusion” about her support for IVF and received backlash over being a cosponsor of the legislation.

“Nothing is more pro-life than helping families with children and I do not support federal restrictions on IVF,” Steel said on the House floor. “A recent court ruling prompted confusion about whether the life at conception act bans IVF. I’m removing myself from the bill because it could create confusion about my support for the blessings of having children through IVF. Mr. Speaker, I hereby remove my name as a co-sponsor of HR 431. I have been and always will be pro-life.”

Efforts in the Democratically-controlled Senate to protect IVF have also struggled to advance, as a pair of legislative efforts were blocked by Republicans in recent weeks. Democrats tried to pass bills on IVF based on unanimous consent, a process that is faster than usual Senate procedure but allows any one Senate member to object to advancing the legislation, something Republican senators did both times.

CNN’s Morgan Rimmer, Lauren Mascarenhas and Isabel Rosales contributed to this report.

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