Why the Alabama Supreme Court Embryo Ruling Affects Us All

My colleague from the UK commented that the Alabama Supreme Court ruling leaves her and other medical providers across the pond “sad, shocked, and incredulous.”  I find all of those emotions in myself.

For those who aren’t keeping up, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled on a case regarding the accidental destruction of embryos.  Despite previous courts dismissing the suit, the ASC ruled that cryopreserved embryos, (frozen embryos that may never even receive a transfer into a gestational carrier), are essentially children with the full rights of children who are walking the earth. 

Although many people jump to agree with this, a drastic fight for logical reasoning is playing out now, in the courts and in the media.  And the risk is potentially the failure of IVF treatments as we know it. 

IVF treatments, in vitro fertilization, create babies for those who are unable to conceive naturally.  A woman with blocked tubes, a man with testicular damage, women who can’t ovulate on their own, and a million other scenarios encourage people to try IVF to expand their families. 

Creating an embryo outside of the womb is the goal.  With the cost and invasiveness a consideration, creating multiple embryos at once and cryopreserving them is the goal. 

Let’s identify what a cryopreserved embryo is, in layman’s terms:

• An embryo is a fertilized egg and sperm, usually between 5-7 days old.  

• If the egg and sperm fertilize, the embryo must contain visible, necessary structural elements that suggest it is compatible with life. 

• The embryo is known as a blastocyst and contains between 200-300 cells. 

• Two parts must be present to be compatible with further development; the inner cell mass which becomes the fetus and the outer cell mass which will develop into a placenta. That’s it.  That is the state of the “child” in question. 

The Alabama Supreme Court rules that this cellular structure is a child, and as a result, has the same rights as a child that has been born. This has GRAND, SWEEPING implications for the parents of said children, and the providers that are responsible for the entire process. 

If these embryos are to be considered children, then who is responsible for any failure to thrive?  The parents? The providers?  If the embryo doesn’t survive the thawing process for a transfer, is there LIABILITY associated with it? Are non-viable embryos- those without a functional inner cell mass - still considered children even though they could never become one? Are embryos to be permanently preserved on ice FOREVER since they can no longer be destroyed, as that will infringe on their rights? Will families that have cryopreserved embryos have to continue to pay for their storage indefinitely, which will indicate the need for named guardians to assume that responsibility once the original embryo holder has passed? Are embryos, as children, eligible for a tax deduction as a dependant? Can one spouse sue another for custody of embryos? Can one spouse sue another for wrongful death if the embryo doesn’t implant and there is no pregnancy? Can you sue the doctor for this, too? 

You might think that these are far-fetched or outlandish scenarios, but the truth is, that’s the future under this ruling. 

That is EXACTLY what is going to happen.  

I will steer clear of the political will of this campaign for this post because THIS SHOULD NOT BE A POLITICAL ISSUE. 

This is a medical issue and should be kept between the confidentiality of the patient and the provider. 

Right now, this is playing out on the Gulf Coast, in our backyard.  It has a direct impact on the families that we love, our neighbors, who are now on hold for their children as this battles it’s way through the court system.  

IVF doctors have been ordered, and have elected, to stop performing IVF services in the short term, as to avoid any potential liability while this plays out.  This could stretch the length of time it takes for families to conceive by several years.  

It could force some people to flee the state and go elsewhere for medical care. 

It could bring IVF to halt altogether, one state at a time, as lawmakers interlope into our lives even more.  Inch by inch. 

No one expected the Spanish Inquisition.

Open your eyes and see what’s happening.  

Reproductive freedom is under attack. The ability to have a family in the way one wishes is under attack from all sides. 

This affects everyone.  We are on the edge of a very slippery slope.  If the government can control how reproduction happens, then it can control everything. 

Bottom line.  

Right now, take action by alerting your local congresspeople.  Stand up for your neighbors, your friends, your colleagues, and your family who will need IVF services to complete their family.  

Everyone knows someone who has, or will, go through this. 

Join us in Montgomery this Wednesday, February 28th, for a Reproductive Action Day! 

Stand up for the providers, who are pillars of the Gulf Coast community, that have spent decades helping families bring babies into the world. 

Stand up for the clinicians and technicians who study the process to create higher live birth rates.  

Stand up for the nurses who hold hands, and care for the grieving individuals and couples who are suffering from infertility. 

The ASRM team is "working around the clock" to protect access to IVF, they recommend contacting your elected officials to cosponsor and demand that they pass the Access to Family Building Act (S.3612/ H.R.7056), which would protect IVF across the country. 

This affects everyone. Make your voices heard. Join us in Montgomery this Wednesday, February 28th, for a Reproductive Action Day, or Resolve's Federal Advocacy Day on May 14, 2024!