Florida delays ‘fetal personhood’ bill after fallout from Alabama IVF ruling

Florida lawmakers have postponed a bill that would give fetuses civil rights after a similar ruling in Alabama has halted in vitro fertilization treatment at several clinics in the state.

The “fetal personhood” bill had been gaining support amid Florida’s mostly Republican lawmakers. The legislation attempts to define a fetus as an “unborn child”, allowing parents to collect financial damages in the case of wrongful death, the Tampa Bay Times reported.

But the bill has largely stalled after Democrats argued that the legislation could affect in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments, as seen in Alabama after the state’s supreme court ruled earlier this month that embryos created through IVF are considered “extrauterine children”. Since the ruling, several Alabama IVF clinics have paused services.

The Florida state representative Dotie Joseph, a Democrat, told the Washington Post that the bill’s language did not protect IVF treatment from being impacted.

“We are exposing the healthcare provider to liability if something goes wrong,” Joseph said. “You have a situation where you are creating a chilling effect for people who are proactively trying to have a baby.”

Florida Democrats have also warned that the new law could further affect abortion access, as fetuses gain additional civil rights rights under law.

The Republican state senator Erin Grall, who sponsored the bill, said in a statement that she requested the legislation be postponed amid concerns.

“Although I have worked diligently to respond to questions and concerns, I understand there is still work that needs to be done,” Grall said, the Bay Times reported. “It is important we get the policy right with an issue of this significance.”

Other co-sponsors of the bill, such as the