Alabama IVF Clinic Halts Services After State Rules Frozen Embryos Are ‘Children’

The health system at the University of Alabama at Birmingham is the first fertility clinic to pause in vitro fertilization services in the wake of a sweeping state high court ruling.

The university’s Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility paused services this week in fear or criminal prosecution after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled Friday that frozen embryos are “children.”

“We must evaluate the potential that our patients and our physicians could be prosecuted criminally or face punitive damages for following the standard of care for IVF treatments,” Hannah Echols, spokesperson for UAB, told Al.com.

The University of Alabama at Birmingham did not immediately respond to request for comment from HuffPost.

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