(ZENIT News / Bangkok, 28.02.2024).- On February 16, 2024, the Supreme Court of the State of Alabama, in the USA, ruled in favour of the protection of human life from its embryonic stage. The case consisted in a compensation ruling for parents whose children died in the embryonic stage in a fertility clinic. It was adduced that they must be treated as what they are: persons. Eight judges voted in favour and one against.
The two presidential candidates of the United States have expressed their opinion in this regard.
Joe Biden criticized the ruling. In a White House press release, he said: “Today, in 2024, women in the United States are rejected from emergency rooms and obliged to drive hundreds of miles to receive medical care, while doctors fear being prosecuted criminally if they carry out an abortion. And now an Alabama Court has put in doubt access to some fertility treatments for families trying desperately to conceive. The contempt for women and their families’ capacity to take these decisions on their own is scandalous and unacceptable.”
The ruling affected artificial fertilization practices, like that of the University of Alabama’s business, which has suspended its programs.
Donald Trump also positioned himself, favouring in vitro fertilization (IVF). In his social network Truth he said he supported people “who are trying to have a beautiful baby.” And he added: “Under my leadership, the Republican Party will always support the creation of strong, prosperous and healthy families.” He also said: “We want it to be easier for mothers and fathers to have babies, not more difficult! This includes supporting the availability of fertility treatments, like IVF, in all states of the United States. Like the OVERWHELMING MAJORITY of Americans, including the GREAT MAJORITY of Republicans, conservatives, Christians and pro-life Americans, I firmly support the availability of IVF for couples trying to have a beautiful baby.”
Trump also asked the Alabama legislature to “act quickly” to find a solution to “preserve IVF availability in Alabama.”
In the Republican primaries, Nikki Haley, Trump’s rival, said she supports the decision of the Supreme Court of Alabama. “For me, embryos are babies,” she said to NBC News on February 21. One of Nikki Haley’s children was conceived through artificial insemination.
Haley also said that conversations on IVF are “incredibly personal,” adding: “Let’s never underestimate the importance of the relationship between a doctor and a patient when they are doing something about it.”
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