Trump says he would have government or insurance pay for IVF treatments if elected

Former President Trump said Thursday that his administration would protect access to in vitro fertilization (IVF) and have either the government or insurance companies pay for the treatment if he’s elected in November.

“We are going to be — under the Trump administration, we are going to be paying for that treatment,” he said in an exclusive interview with NBC News, adding that would apply to “all Americans who get it; all Americans who need it.”

“So, we’re going to be paying for that treatment, or we’re going to be mandating that the insurance companies pay,” he added.

He did not expand on how the mandate would look, but maintained he was “always for IVF,” NBC reported.

“Right from the beginning, as soon as we heard about it,” he said, adding, “It’s helping women and men and families.”

Vice President Harris’s presidential campaign slammed Trump’s pledge to pay for IVF, claiming it is “one of his most brazen lies yet.” 

“Donald Trump’s own platform could effectively ban IVF and abortion nationwide. Trump lies as much if not more than he breathes, but voters aren’t stupid. Because Trump overturned Roe v. Wade, IVF is already under attack and women’s freedoms have been ripped away in states across the country,” Harris-Walz campaign spokesperson Sarafina Chitika said in a statement. 

IVF has been a central concern for political figures and voters alike in the past year, following the Alabama Supreme Court’s ruling that frozen embryos and fertilized eggs are considered people under law, and anyone who destroys them can be held liable for their death.

IVF services were mostly halted in the state in reaction to the ruling, though lawmakers quickly passed legislation to address civil and criminal liability for IVF providers, allowing services to resume.

The Trump-Vance campaign, like the larger Republican party ahead of the 2024 election, has largely sought to sidestep issues related to abortion and reproductive rights, given the unpopularity of its anti-abortion agenda among voters since Roe v. Wade was overturned two years ago. 

Trump has repeatedly been blamed by Democrats for the reversal of Roe v. Wade in 2022, after he appointed three of the justices who voted with the 6-3 majority in the landmark decision.

While infertility remains a common problem among Americans, many insurance companies or employers still do not cover fertility treatments such as IVF. A total of 54 percent of the biggest U.S. employers — those with 20,000 workers or more — covered IVF in 2022, The Associated Press reported, citing benefits consultant Mercer.

The debate over IVF was ignited earlier this summer on Capitol Hill, where senators introduced competing bills aimed at protecting access to the treatment.

This story was updated at 9:18 p.m.