The IVF problem

I’ll admit, I did not expect that in vitro fertilization, or “IVF,” would be a major part of the political discourse of 2024.

But a court ruling in Alabama declaring unused IVF embryos as legal people has thrust the issue into the national political spotlight and prompted Republicans everywhere to announce quickly that they support the procedure and do not want to see it restricted before Democrats claim that they do.

Now, IVF has been around for decades and has primarily been used by women who suffer from infertility. It is a procedure where an egg is fertilized with sperm outside of a woman’s uterus, where it is later implanted. Because of the delicate nature of the procedure, most IVF procedures involve the fertilization and implantation of numerous eggs because it has a high rate of failure. Unused embryos are typically frozen for later use if the implantations are unsuccessful.