NORFOLK, Va. — As President Biden delivers the annual State of the Union Address, legislators and their guests are coming together on Capitol Hill to listen.
One of those guests is Elizabeth Carr, the first baby born in the U.S. by IVF.
“It's something I’ve been talking about for 42 years, or for as long as I could string together a sentence" Carr said Thursday afternoon.
Carr is not shy about talking about IVF.
Virginia U.S. Senator Tim Kaine invited her to be his guest at the 2024 State of the Union Address.
Health
Sen. Kaine holds roundtable in Norfolk to discuss IVF
“I’m truly honored and humbled to be here as your guest to represent the IVF community," said Carr.
IVF stands for in vitro fertilization and is used to help women struggling to become pregnant.
In February, Alabama’s Supreme Court ruled frozen embryos, which are used in the IVF process, are considered kids in the state.
Carr and fellow State of the Union Guest Dr. Rohini Kousalya Siva worry about the impact of the ruling.
Kousalya Siva is an Eastern Virginia Medical School grad and aspiring OB-GYN and has been invited to the address by Virginia Congressman Bobby Scott.
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“I’ve gotten messages from around the United States, from people, saying ‘Do you think this could happen here?’" Carr said. "Sadly, yes, so we all have to be paying attention to these issues right now."
“This discourse around extra-uterine children and this very tightening group of regulations, it really just undermines the science behind these very life-giving technologies and, also, really erodes the autonomy of women," said Kousalya Siva.
The Family Foundation of Virginia and the Virginia Society for Human Life are glad a conversation is now happening.
“I think the case highlights the fact that the IVF industry is fairly unregulated," The Family Foundation Government Relations Vice President Todd Gathje said. "We want to pursue policies that protect that life, that treat it with the utmost respect and dignity. Those are conversations we’ll have moving forward."
“I think we need to look carefully at whatever we do discuss," Virginia Society for Human Life President Olivia Gans Turner said. "Obviously, the General Assembly is just wrapping up right now here in Richmond so it’s a little too late to have that conversation. But it is something that we need to have an awareness of."
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First IVF baby in America was born in Norfolk 42 years ago
Carr, too, is glad a conversation is happening.
"It's good that people are paying attention to these things, but I think now we're also at a point not just to essentially pay attention to this issue but also really take a moment to understand the full swath of reproductive technologies and what's out there,“ Carr explained.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has also weighed in on IVF. A spokesperson for the governor sent News 3 a statement saying the governor supports IVF.
Governor Youngkin unequivocally supports access to IVF for Virginians hoping to experience the blessing of a family. His administration has also implemented crucial measures to support women before and after pregnancy, including expanded access to childcare, opportunities within the adoptive and foster care systems, and re-establishing expectations of excellence in our education system. Governor Youngkin will always protect access to IVF and fertility treatments that Virginians rely on to realize their dream of building a family.
A bill called the Access to Family Building Act is going through Congress. It would establish a statutory right to access IVF for all Americans.
