Gadarian Talks to BBC News, States Newsroom About the Alabama IVF Ruling

February 26, 2024

BBC,States Newsroom

Shana Kushner Gadarian

Political Science Department

Campbell Public Affairs Institute

Abortion

Parenting & Family

Political Parties

State & Local

United States

BBC

States Newsroom

Shana Kushner Gadarian

On Feb. 16, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are equivalent to human children, prompting clinics in the state to pause IVF treatments for fear of prosecution.

Shana Gadarian, professor of political science and associate dean for research, tells States Newsroom that despite the support at the legislative level for such laws, she’s not sure this latest development out of Alabama will be politically popular with the majority of the country.

“IVF is a pretty common procedure now, and if someone directly hasn’t gone through it, it is relatively common among groups that are more likely to be conservative,” Gadarian says. “These are procedures people think of as important in their own lives and are probably separable from abortion.”

In the BBC News article, “Alabama IVF ruling a political gift for Democrats, headache for Republicans,” Gadarian says, “Restricting IVF is going to be unpopular even among conservative and Republican voters and is an extreme position not shared by most Americans.”